Player Ratings: Zambia 0-2 Algeria
By Whisper,
Who has the calculator?! It’s time for mathematics.
Overall we played well guys, a much improved performance than against Rwanda. I know that the game is all about scoring goals but we did everything apart from that.
Okay here’s how I saw it.
Mweene 7/10
Hard to asses because he didn’t have much to do apart from pick the ball out of the net a couple of times. Perhaps he could have come off his line a bit quicker for the Algerians first goal, but that would be a harsh critisism.
Muzo 7.5/10
Fantastic. I have given the guy a hard time in my assessments, but he proved me wrong today. Solid at the back (although the cross for the second goal came from his side) and a threat going forward. Belhadj the much talked about Portsmouth left back was kept in check and I actually think that Muzo won their battle.
Mbola 7/10
Did well and displayed a never say die attitude. He defended well and ensured that the threat on that side of the pitch never materialised. Got forward well but his delivery wasn’t always the best. The commentator on myafricanfootball was drooling over the boy, especially as he has only just turned 16. Overall not a Rwanda performance, but not far off.
The Machine 6/10
Tough and strong. Even though the Algerian forward looked much bigger than him, Nyambe didn’t give him an inch to manoever. Again I think it is difficult to asses him because the Algerians didn’t really offer anything going forward.
Dennis Banda (Elegant, that’s what I’ll be calling him from now on) 6/10
This dude is simply smooth. A good passer with either foot and with good dribbling skill. Like his centreback partner he didn’t have much to do apart from challenging the long ball from the Algerians. The first goal was down to either him or Nyambe, I’m not sure who. And his pace running back was suspect on the second goal.
Mr Reliable 5/10
Francis was out of sorts for the whole time he was on. He did really well in winning the ball from the Algerians and displayed his ox-like strength in 50/50 situations, but his distribution was awful. He persisted in trying to launch long balls and hardly any found the target. Subbed at halftime.
Feligol 7/10
Despite someone above saying that Kalaba was their Man of the Match, I’m giving it to Felix. He ran the show for Zambia, collected the ball in midfield and carried it forward. He has great ball control, dribbling skills, is two footed and has a good shot (although it was missing today). He also showed a huge amount of commitment today, fighting for every ball. There was a great demonstration of his skill late on when he beat 3 defenders on the left side and they had to foul him. I really think the coach at Chateauroux is blind.
Kaka-balika 8/10
The combination of him and Felix was a major positive to come out of the match. Although not as skillful as his partner in crime he has a fantastic range of passing and vision. He was unlucky not to have scored from a fiercly struck freekick and showed real desire throughout. definately should play in the centre with Feligol.
Staff Sergent 6/10
I love Chris, but something just isn’t right at the moment. He didn’t seem to have a position and was lost throughout the first half. His trademark direct running is gone, his quickfire shots have disappeared. He isn’t the same player. In this game he made no contribution in the first half and although did a little more in the second it still wasn’t enough to save him from being subbed. I can’t help but think that this move to Bielefeld has been really bad for him. It seems like the confidence is gone and he isn’t sure what to do with the ball when he gets it.
Jaco 7/10
Started like he finished against Rwanda. Within the first minute he had harried the Algerians into a corner having beaten two of them with skill, power and pace. You could see that it mattered to him and his expression following a point blank miss in the second half revealed his emotions. He is big and strong, the Algerians had obviously singled him out and they didn’t give him space. Joco kept running and harrying, but he needs to do more than that… he needs to score.
Freedom 5.5/10
Unfortunately the predator failed to take down his prey even when it was handed to him on a plate. Given had 2 outstanding opportunities in the first half and failed to take either. The first was a free header at the far post. If he had made the keeper work then he could be excused, but to miss the target, that’s inexcusable. The second chance was fluffed when he shot straight at the keeper following some amazing work on the right from Muzo who then put through a fabulous ball. Verdict: Given needs to score soon or he might not get too many more chances.
Subs
Fwayo 6.5/10
Came on for Given and added some extra skill and pace to the attack. His first touch was to beat an Algerian with a sublime piece of skill which got the crowd on its feet. I really like Fwayo and think that he has a big part to playin our future, I think HR just needs to bite the bullet and make the tough decision to bench Chris because he’s off form. Fwayo had a guilt edged chance to equalise when he met a deflected Jaco cross and the ball was cleared off the line. The Algerian’s hit us with a deadly counter and scored their second. Overall decent game.
Noah 7/10
Came on for Kasonde at halftime and was the distributor that Francis failed to be. Noah has a sweet left foot and used it to great effect in spreading the play via long diagonal balls. I think Noah is both the luckiest and most unlucky player at the same time. Let me explain. He is lucky because despite not playing at his club he consistently gets called up for Chipolopolo and gets game time. He is unlucky because he is asked to play a huge variety of roles and can’t make any position his own. If he can replicate the second half performance then he might challenge Kasonde, but I would need to see him up against a team that was more intent on attacking so that we can see how he is under pressure.
Bomber 7/10
Came on for his skipper and put himself about (as they say in UK). The boy is still only 18 but his time in Isreal seems to have bulked him up and he has a bit of a physical presence. Worried the Algerians with his strength, running and enthusiaism. Had one shot way of target, but did well in the build up to shield the ball, turn and shoot. Let him continue his development and he will be one to reckon with.
Verdict: We played well and had the Algerians on the ropes for much of the match. Even though they had a star studded team we surprassed them in most areas. At the final whistle the average age of out team was about 21 which is amazing. We have made it difficult to qualify for SA2010, but at least we know that we just have to win all the remaining games, no more factoring in draws it’s win or nothing now
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Tuli Mbwa chabe
To those comrades that are now issuing ultimatums to the team, coach and FAZ, please let’s get real guys! The team did really well, but just failed to score a goal. I admit we have trouble scoring at home, but this is sometimes how things go. We outplayed the Algerians (with all their lost sons from France) and showed that our players have a lot of talent. If we had a bit more luck yesterday we would have scored 3 or 4 goals. Watch the game again and you will see.
I do have to say one thing though. We do need proper friendlies to build confidence in the team and help them develop those deadly combinations. We are languishing in 90th place in the FIFA rankings and over the past 2 weeks have had a golden chance to engage some decent opposition. I simply don’t understand why we haven’t. We were in the same country as some major footballing nations and failed to even ask them. When Kenya came calling we instead opt to play some Junior Pirates, what was that level of opposition going to expose??
chipolopolo will still qualify despite the loss,we are still in contention.hard luck guys!
I don’t understand some people on this blog. They always have someone to blame even when itis obvious that none is to blame. Anyone who watched the game will know better. I wonder if some of these so-called fans know anything about football-it’s bloody disgusting reading some of these comments!!!!
You’re totally right. Except I don’t think that wasn’t only a question of “luck” yersteday but also a question of converting opportunities into goals. Apart from that I think the large number of occasions should bring some hope among fans
Amen to that Gesh. I would really like for the critics to watch the game over and over and then askthemselves whether their criticisms are warranted. This kinda explains why the team struggles at home. I am confident that we will win the away games-it’s the home game I am worried about. We were even lucky to win against Rwanda-too much negativity. Mu chinje mwe
I am back and proven right.I had said the Nyambe/Dennis defense is a disaster waiting to happen, and all of you condemned.God is greastest!
Just watched Egypt get clobbered by the USA. When gomma missed what would have been Egypt’s only needed goal to make it to the semi finals the commentator mentioned how “its not meant to be” if you miss such chances. Then I had a flashback of all the clear chances that Zambia missed in yesterdays game. The same commentators had a quick chat of how Egypt had won the ball possession battle despite being down by three goals. One of them mentioned how that’s usually the case. I figured what really counts is the goals, so there’s now way a team could win if they don’t score. No matter how much they defend. Football is a game of chances, you have to convert your chances. Believe it or not, every team on the field gets chances so don’t blame the defense if the other team scores. IF We had scored first We would have given the defense a reason to defend, otherwise we were all out attack since we were playing at home.
Hlexi They only allowed to goals, those were difficult to defend. Did you even watch the game?
Before you blame the defense for yesterdays loss watch the game.
And Hlexi both goals came from the wings, so it would make sense if you were putting the blame on Mbola, and Musonda. Otherwise you are being biased, this leads me to believe that you have a personal issues with dennis and Nyambe. They did not make any mistakes in yesterdays game.
@Gesh
@M from France
@DaMwiinger
if you guys understand losses and wins of soccer,,,,you should also realise that in soccer when you win its always important to find ways of maintaining those wins and when you loss its always important,,,very important to go back to the drawing board and make changes on your weak points/depts. What am saying and maybe many others is simply pointing out the weakness..not finding excuses….
firstly chupungu…is one weakness and secondly the whole FAZ is other point…
Explain playing orlando pirates reserves friendly when you are preparing for a do or die game against Algeria???…Tell me thats finding an excuse to make changes????
i agree with you ….but what do we do with management if there are not performing????
I’s funny I was actually cheering for Egypt. It just shows that any team can be beaten on any given day. Zambia can very easily bounce back and win the remaining games. Who would have thought and I had counted them out as well that the USA would reach the semi-finals of the Confederation Cup. Great Teams do rise from the doldrums of defeat and if Zambia is to be great it has to rise to the occasion even when the odds seem against us. HR is confident that there is still hope, I would like to agree. I agree with you Gentlemen 12 on the defense.
Well joseph, RSA management has never been taking care of, may be those are the guys we need to deal with. I totally agree with what you are saying, and management has realized this that’s why they are trying to make it right the next time around.
Dis I was on the same page, and who thought Brazil would also beat Italy by 3 goals to help USA qualify. By the way Italy has the best defensive team in the world, and they allowed three goals. Watching a replay of Brazil vs Italy right now.
Wow Italy Scored an own goal….
Ok…i must agree,our preps need to be pushed up a gear…in all fairness,the boys rarely make use of Fifa international days & hence the much needed coordination suffers…I live in Algeria (i wish i dint afta Satadae tho..lol) & from wat i hav gathered; Algeria is playin Tunisia or Morocco on the next Fifa days and then Italy or France in Novemba or so (P.S-its just rumour,i hav not confirmed) but dats still a massive sign of intent,rumour or not..we seriously need to follow suite!!!!
Interesting debate going on here. I think we all agree when it is all said and done, it boils down to a lack of preparations. Zambia can still qualify, so I don’t understand those who are writing us off totally. We have only made the odds unnecessarily long, but winning the remaining three games would do it, of course factoring in the result between Egypt and Algeria. We still control our own destiny until the two Arab nations face each other again.
I agree with those slamming our preparations. If I recall correctly, HR said one of the benefits of camping in SA was the possibility of arranging a match with one of the teams in the Confederations Cup. But obviously that did not materialize, assuming attempts were even made. You really have to admit that a lack of serious competition could be blamed as to why this blunt striking force has not been sorted out. This will also help the technical staff to gauge the level of form of the players who don’t feature regularly at their clubs. I heard somewhere that “chance favors the prepared mind”.
Egypt got beaten by a bunch of high school and college selected kids. 3-0. It not about names, its all about wanting it bad enough. Zambia wastes time searching for the perfect goal. A goal is a goal even if you throw yourself in the goal with the ball. The US team plays for ranking not fame. All they are talking about is just scoring against Spain. Not winning or advancing. They score against Spain they climb the table. Zambian team is more skilled than the US team. I just don’t get it. Its like we are bewitched. Its still wide open. Yes Algeria has the advantage, but its any teams game.
Somethings will never change.
@Marty USA
Hahaha Ati Bewitched that’s funny bro……Who knows may be We are bewitched. Am yet to see a striker that will be as deadly as Kelvin Mutale, that is why that team was fiercy. We had enough scorers in the team, then the team after that went as far as runs up in 1994 because the team had character. We had great Kalu, there was always a 90% chance He would score from a free kick so we were guaranteed goals. Then We had Commando Johnston Bwalya, scored most of his goals outside the 18 area. Finally there was Elijah Litana corner kicks were half goals then. Nowadays there’s no one to head the corner kicks home, free kicks are just a waste of time.
We play without purpose We just play for the sake of playing. Have We become like Congo Brazzaville? Outplay the opponents but cant score a single goal?
Everytime its about playing well, Zambia played well even if we lost for how long. Football is about scoring goals even if you play badly, at the end of the day its a win that counts. Zambia will not qualify for WC cup 2010. At home, when you concede a goal, make sure you come back from behind to score 1 or 2 goals to win the game. In tournaments like this you dont need to lose at home if you want to qualify, maybe atleast a draw. In Zambia we have a system of disposing off quality players too early and quickly. I think coach is also too petty. Any small difference with a player, then its a big issue. I think Isaac Chansa and Andrew Sinkala should be considered to add that needed experience to the team. I know the Sinkala issue is closed but Chansa should be recalled HH and Kampamba should also be tried in coming matches. All in all Zambia is not going to qualify to South Africa WC 2010. We squandered that opportunity on Saturday. Just continue working towards the AFCON 2010 in Angola. I think thats Zambia’s portion. Forget about WC not anytime soon.
Im proud of the boys. We played our lungs out but scoring was not any easy even the goal Kalaba scored was disallowed, it it hit the inner top of the net and bounced back on the field of play.
To qualify we have to do the extraodinary thing, I mean beat them in algeria and get three points against Egypt and beat Rwanda in the final game.
Niwebo we mbwa
The Best Player in the Zambian shirt on Saturday was Rainford Kalaba.He did everything it takes.Mbola was excellent too,just as Felix on certain times.
I feel the state of the pitch at Konkola is working against Zambia’s style of play.If you take stock ever since Zambia started using Konkola stadium we have had problems scoring.Thats why it is important for the team to be training more at Konkola to get used to the turf.
The curse of a football nation… Zambian football is doomed.
You are right my Man!.Zambia was supposed to have been using Konkola Stadium for training.In that way,they would also have coped with the spectators watching them.What does Home Ground mean if a team goes to train in a foreign Country?.I found no wisdom for HR to avoid injuries while traing than risk losing because of luck of aclimatisation to our own pitch and spectators.
We will win in Blida.If Gabon can beat Morocco,what can stop Chipolopolo?.We shall shame you in your backyard,it will be ‘REVENGE’.
With Kalu on top of the game,the race is over for us.Lack of seriousness and lack of patriotism from those running the game.The govt did its bes t so as the zambian companies the players and the trainers but the administrators are suspect.Now even Afcon ill be tricky
@Gametime12
we cant keep about talking abt the past ,we belong to the future brother.we have a problem here n lets join heads.The problem of failing to score was first indentified by Jan browere we had guyz like Milanzi failing to score in yawning goals.Kalu must leave
@Amuna Onzuna
Hi Amuna, stop having this kind of basic annalyzes…….Algeria was stong during the 95mints, Algeria played a reall football, when you were in tha air of a very small victoy that you had with Ruwanda…..your team just scored 1 goal in 3 game , we scored 5 !!!!!! isnt enaugh for you to understand that we are a big team…..next to come is egypte in Zambia I can tell you that if you play the same way as u did with us then the score will be very very heavy, let just meet in Algeria again
@Amuna Onzuna
start by having a pitch then try to get a team…….
@FIFA
If you took time and read my post carefully then you’d be able to tell that I was not dwelling on the past. I was just pointing out what is lacking in our present and future team, by comparing it to the successful teams we had in the past. Its also wise to learn from the past, take a piece of the past. Our lads need to learn something from our fallen heroes.
dear amuna
i think that realy yu’re debil or yu don’t know nothing in that rey sport which is football,or simply yu’re naif…destroy first your konkolma stadium and try to built another one worthy of a football stadium…and then we can converse about football…so please don’t sprak about our algerian team,he’s more greater than yu, please shut up…