January 18, 2010
Samuel Eto'o trying to go past Thomas Nyirenda.
Zambianfootball.net
takes a look at how individual players performed in the 3-2 loss to Cameroon.
Many pundits have suggested that the Chipolopolo Boys should start showing character and perseverance until the end of the game if they want to be counted among the best in Africa.
Kennedy Mweene - This is a game the 25 year old will never forget. At the Ghana 2008 African Cup of Nations, it was the defenders who made school boy mistakes and gifted Cameroon but this time around it was the Free State Stars goalkeeper with a blunder that ignited the indomitable Lions back into the game- 4/10.
Joseph Musonda -Nonsense but did not offer much going forward because of how the team set out. He played his lungs out- 6/10.
Emmanuel Mbola - He is having a terrible tournament by his own standards . He should take the blame for Cameroon’s second goal when he allowed to be turned in and out. Its time his raised up his game- 5/10.
Stopilla Sunzu – He defended like a lion. The 20 year old gave another eye catching display as a makeshift centre-back. His aerial strength and interceptions have been a real handful at the back.
But unfortunately his clearance rebounded off Samuel Eto’o and the Inter-Milan striker scored. Again lucky was not on his side when Cameroon went for route one football with Njitap Geremi’s cross connected by the striker for the goal- the only time Sunzu was beaten in the air- 7/10
Kampamba Chintu – Alongside Sunzu, he was Zambia’s impressive players. ‘Modibo’ showed there’s no better substitute for experience. He organised the defence and was a leader on pitch – 6.5
Felix Katongo - He was awesome in the first half. His dazzling run and cross from the left wing provided an assist to Jacob Mulenga’s goal. He was the reason why Geremi did not overlap in the first half- 6.5.
Thomas Nyirenda - Worked tireless in midfield but when the opposition decided to play direct football, he was nowhere to be seen. The 13 times capped was reverted to his full back position after Musonda was substituted-5.5
Rainford Kalaba – He was direct and simple. His well taken free-kick was spilled by Carlos Kameni but Chris Katongo failed to score.
His withdraw from the game just before the hour mark left vacuum in midfield as Nyirenda and Kasonde failed to hold on to the ball- 6/10.
Chris Katongo – Another below par performance from the captain. He had a chance to put the game beyond the Cameroon’s reach but his close range tap-in was acrobatically saved by Kameni. On the positive, Tsunami tracked back and assisted the right full back. Well taken penalty though!!!- 5.5
James Chamanga – Going into the tournament, he was Zambia’s inform striker. ‘Chama Boy’ did not impose himself onto the game. Occasionally he was let down by his first touch. He can do better!- 5.8
Jacob Mulenga – He led the line well and gave Rigobert Song a torrid time. Capped his fine performance with a poachers’ goal and was involved in the penalty when he moved brought down after outstripping Song. A move to Holland has really improved the 25 year old’s game. What more can you ask for- two goals in 2 games-8/10.
Substitutes:
Francis Kasonde- replaced Kalaba but did not have any impact on the game. His job was to thwart the Cameroonians attack- 5/10
Isaac Chansa- came in for Felix Katongo. Chansa should have closed Geremi but drifted far too much centrally thus giving the veteran the licence to surge forward and putting in those teasing crosses- 5/10
Emmanuel Mayuka- Renard decided to push Chansa inside and Mayuka replaced Musonda and on the left wing, the teenage striker showed a little a bit of skill and intelligence on the ball but little time to have any impact- 5/10
Herve Renard- Continued with his 4-4-2 formation and a diamond midfield. Worked out in the first half. The quartet; Kalaba, Felix, Chamanga and Jacob offered a real threat when going forward.
Second Half
The Frenchman should have introduced Clifford Mulenga for the ineffective Chamanga and go with three in midfield and push Clifford to the left flank. With Clifford, Geremi could have concentrated on keeping him quite than being offensive.
Two defenders in midfield
One wonders what role Nyirenda has been providing to the team? Has he been breaking up play?..No! Has he been covering? No! Both games have showed that he is a full back and play him there.
Kasonde for Kalaba
Kasonde’s introduction was good but not on Kalaba.It was supposed to be Kasonde for Nyirenda. With two defenders in the midfield anchor role, the team failed to hold to ball and pose threat to the opposition.
Zambia could have finished the game like this
___________Mweene_______
Muzo___Sunzu____Chintu___Nyirenda
______Kasonde______Chansa___
Chris_________Kalaba/Felix________Clifford
____________Jacob________-
Clifford for Chamanga- offering a bit of threat when going foward.
Kasonde for Mbola- Slot Kasonde in midfield as he did but Mbola was supposed to be replaced and push Nyirenda to the left back role.
Chansa for Felix/Kalaba- Forget about Kalaba being another yellow card away from being suspended. If he wasn’t injured he was supposed to have completed the game. What happens if Zambia looses to Gabon with Kalaba in the side?
Chansa could have replaced Felix since he was tiring but another glance even Chris being substituted wouldn’t have been a bad tactical sub.
When a team is defending like Zambia was doing, it’s easier to get a goal on the counter if pacy wingers are deployed. Imagine Sakuwaha and Clifford with Jacob upfront against that Cameroon defence…!!!
48 Comments on "Zambia 2-3 Cameroon: Player Ratings"
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malikazulu on Mon, 18th Jan 2010 12:53 PM
renard, did his bit but maybe our strikers should make the effort of the defenders [pay otherwise we’ll keep talking about what could have been… mweene really messed up his nation but give the guy a break lets allow hiim a chance to redeem himself, i mean wasn’t our first goal a result of a mistake by africas most experienced? how about kameni’s penalt assault on jacob wasn’t it a mistake?… i like the combination of james and jacob… but true charactor is measured when you play the very best. last night, the two would have really shot down the not so indomitable lion…
to the guys mweene to J&J… its called football and not all is lost. we have the Dilambas to wire so lets keeps our heads up. lets do this….. Gabon, here we come!
DaMwiinger on Mon, 18th Jan 2010 1:32 PM
Zamfoot, good rating overall but I think you are alittle hard on Chamanga. The system we played was really 4-4-1-1 changing to 4-4-2 when attacking. Chamanga was man-marking Song when Cameroun was attacking and then pushing forward when we were attacking. That contributed alot to Cameroun being ineffective in the first half. And that’s why I agree with you 100% that he should have been subbed for Clifford in the second half to add pace and push Geremi back. There were a number of options to be used to continue keeping Song at bay. Kasonde could have come on for Felix and pick up Chamanga’s defensive role and then Chris do the attacking role. Alternatively with Kalaba out, Clifford would have come on still for Felix and Mayuka for Chamanga. Kasonde would have continued to marshall Song but then we would have pace going forward giving the tired defense of Cameroun an even harder torrid time. Poor tactics in the second half plus poor finishing cost us.
What is your rating for HR?
DaMwiinger on Mon, 18th Jan 2010 1:33 PM
@malikazulu
Malikachana?????
Never on Mon, 18th Jan 2010 1:42 PM
Are the spirits of the fallen heroes(Gabon) angry with the way Zambia has treated its relatives? There has been too much unluckiness in the Zambia game these days.Even where we are supposed to win we lose.Imagine that goal let in my Mweene. Painful!
Magic on Mon, 18th Jan 2010 1:44 PM
Ba Zamfoot. Be a bit more objective. You say, “Forget about Kalaba being another yellow card away from being suspended. If he wasn’t injured he was supposed to have completed the game. What happens if Zambia looses to Gabon with Kalaba in the side?”
That surprises me. He was skating on thin ice and a red card was just around the corner. The reason you pick a squad and not eleven is because you trust in the ability of even those on the bench to come and play a meaningful role when called upon. At that point we were a goal up and looking well organised in defence. Even without Kalaba, we should have been competent to hold on to the lead (alas, Mweene had his own ideas). We would have been butchered had we gone a man down. We would then be missing Kalaba for the Gabon game.
Ba Zamfoot, you ask the question, “What happens if Zambia looses to Gabon with Kalaba in the side”. Well, then it happens. At the time, under the circumstances, HR did the right thing! I think there are more crucial moments that should be the “what if ” moments. What if Katongo had scored the sitter he missed and put us 2-0 up? What if Mweene hadn’t lost his marbles and saved a ball even PK Chishala would have stopped?
Ba Zamfoot, you go on to criticize the deployment of Nyirenda and his performance. I find that rather harsh. Alex Song of Arsenal fame was muted because of the work done by Kalaba and Nyirenda. He did a good job of closing down the angles, tracking Song and Eto (when he went deep to collect). He kept it simple, a disciplined perfomance. I will be surprised if he is dropped or moved because he followed the coaches instructions to the letter and screened our defence extremely well. Ask yourself why the Cameroonians had the “lions share” of the possesion (70% compared to 30%) but had very little goal mouth action? Its simple, Nyirenda screened well, forcing them into lateral and backward passes. Nyirenda, job well done. Unsung hero, put in a good shift, Zamfoot rating of 5.5 is harsh.
Magic on Mon, 18th Jan 2010 1:50 PM
By the way, good work with the site, please keep up the fight against the viruses and malware. Please, we rely on you for our info and platform to hear what other bloggers think. With the threat of “Al Qaeda” on the website, we will be lost.
Request: Any chance of some news from within the camp? What is the mood like? What are the players views? What are the coaches views and preparations for Gabon?
Thanks.
Ba Kalampa on Mon, 18th Jan 2010 2:11 PM
inchili ndelila…! why, why…Eto’o did nothing! nothing!……awe sure……its all out against Gabon..!
chamz on Mon, 18th Jan 2010 2:14 PM
Kalaba and Felix were injured.
DaMwiinger on Mon, 18th Jan 2010 2:20 PM
From the Post
COACH Herve Renard has said his players are more comfortable playing abroad because that is where they are more accepted than at home.
Renard said in an interview in Lubango that there is very little patriotism for the team especially after it failed to qualify for the South Africa 2010 FIFA World Cup.
“You Zambians are not proud of Zambia,” Renard said.” The players are more comfortable playing abroad than playing in Zambia.”
“People are disappointed because of dreaming of the World Cup but I said it when I first came here that my objective was the Africa Cup. You have to be realistic.”
Renard added that Chipolopolo receives more praise abroad than at home.
“When you are home, comments from Zambia are hard but from Europe and Africa they are happy,” he said.
“You have to be realistic and believe in yourselves because it is a long process building this team.”
The Frenchman has saluted football fans of Lubango where the team has been based since arriving in Angola on January 10 for rallying behind Chipolopolo.
The Lubango fans cheered Chipolopolo in the team’s opening Group D match on January 13 against Tunisia that ended 1-all.
“You know why they supported us?,” he asked, adding; “It is because we played the first 30 minutes some very good football..”
Chipolopolo were by press time in action against Cameroon in Lubango in both side’s penultimate Group D match.
The team is expected to fly out of Lubango today to Benguela where they will face Gabon in their final Group D game on Thursday at 18:00 hours Zambian time.
kaluz on Mon, 18th Jan 2010 2:49 PM
the person who destroyd the game was the coach who introduced the defancive formation in the second half.in whose name do you defend a goel with 40mint to go.we need kinah phiri as our coach
Zulu on Mon, 18th Jan 2010 2:51 PM
chamanga gave the best performance taking care of Alex Song in midfield….how could u give hime a five?
Steven on Mon, 18th Jan 2010 3:37 PM
That is actually very true.
chamz on Mon, 18th Jan 2010 3:48 PM
People, how many times I am going to tell you? Felix and Kalaba were injured. Your favourite, Isaac Chansa came in, even the Kasonde you say in better than Nyirenda came. That is when we conceded.
chiti chitundu on Mon, 18th Jan 2010 4:04 PM
first of all the game with africas top ranked team was a;ways going to be difficlut i think the boys lack some mental capabilities, mental toughness,beleif in themselves,the physcoligocal (i dont know how to spell this word gents since grade
thats why we fail to hold on to the lead. tournamnets of that nature need a bit more experience and maturity thats why you saw chintu more stable than mbola and sunzu nyirenda etc. its much more than just skill,ruuning and flicks and passes. At this level its more of a mental state and how your mind is strong and i.e how you can concentrate for the whole 90 minutes which isnt easy when you are not experienced unlike geremi ,song ,eto….. thats why we start well then we have laspes ion concentrating then, our confidence dwindles then we collapse . so its just that we are not strong mentaly even as supporters, when we score we think aaaahh twawina!!! when they score we are also deafeated so we have the same mentality as the players. Otherwise we will always support these guys and one day when we are united we will make.
shadbeat on Mon, 18th Jan 2010 4:08 PM
the person who destroyed the game was not the coach but the goalkeeper. the moment the Lions scored, the Chipolopolo decided to start attacking thereby created loopholes in defence. this time around i for one cant blame the coach when your Mwene fails to stop a very simple shot at goal . Viva HR, you really let us down Mwene, shame on you for the ‘childish mistake’
chiti chitundu on Mon, 18th Jan 2010 4:11 PM
first of all the game with africas top ranked team was a;ways going to be difficlut i think the boys lack some mental capabilities, mental toughness,beleif in themselves,the physcoligocal (i dont know how to spell this word gents since grade eight) thats why we fail to hold on to the lead. tournamnets of that nature need a bit more experience and maturity thats why you saw chintu more stable than mbola and sunzu nyirenda etc. its much more than just skill,ruuning and flicks and passes. At this level its more of a mental state and how your mind is strong and i.e how you can concentrate for the whole 90 minutes which isnt easy when you are not experienced unlike geremi ,song ,eto….. thats why we start well then we have laspes ion concentrating then, our confidence dwindles then we collapse . so its just that we are not strong mentaly even as supporters, when we score we think aaaahh twawina!!! when they score we are also deafeated so we have the same mentality as the players. Otherwise we will always support these guys and one day when we are united we will make.
shadbeat on Mon, 18th Jan 2010 4:14 PM
FOR REAL MY DEAR Chamanga had a very good game am surprisised you rated him 5 come on guys let’s be real. anyway that’s your opinion i cant argue.
sharp razor on Mon, 18th Jan 2010 4:20 PM
Truth be told… at least my truth. The subs the coach made are the ones majority of us on this site have been asking for. A silly mistake costed us in this match. I, for once, can not fault the coach. Anyway e bola!!!
Patrick Mwaba on Mon, 18th Jan 2010 4:43 PM
Am heartbroken. Am wondering how we can start defending at an early stage . make me under
Zimandola on Mon, 18th Jan 2010 5:09 PM
I find it difficult to understand why Renard is being blamed.
kk11 on Mon, 18th Jan 2010 5:25 PM
Give us support–Renard
From Xavier Manchishi
Lubango, Sunday
ZAMBIA coach Herve Renard has charged that Zambians are not proud of their Chipolopolo squad and that the team finds more compassion from outsiders rather their own compatriots.
Renard said it was the reason why his players were more comfortable when playing outside Zambia than during home matches at their Konkola Stadium home ground where they are held in low esteem.
Zambia endured a poor home record during the joint Africa and World Cup qualifiers with the Chipolopolo collecting only three points at Konkola with a 1-0 win over Rwanda and collected two on the road after draws against Egypt and Rwanda.
Speaking in an interview, Renard said Zambians always flattered to deceive themselves that the Chipolopolo were the best in the world, which he said, was an unrealistic way of looking at things.
“To be realistic doesn’t mean that you don’t have to be ambitious. You are not realistic with yourselves. We are busy receiving a lot of praise from other people but in Zambia it is all criticism,” he said.
He said Zambia was a young team in the process of maturing into a good team and that previously Zambia used to lose by cricket margins against Tunisia but this time managed to hold the Carthage Eagles.
The Frenchman said most of the comments that came from Zambia were in bad taste when outsiders always had some kind words about the Chipolopolo and their progress since he took over the reigns.
Renard pointed to the unsolicited support Zambia got during the match against Tunisia from Angolans, coupled with the number of people that have approached the team to shower them with praises.
“If the team doesn’t get support from their own fans, where do you except them to get it? Zambians have the passion for football but it’s too much criticism of their players,” he said.
He said Zambians always wanted to advance none issues like his longevity in the job saying the players and the technical bench needed the support of every stakeholder for them to produce good results.
Renard admitted that his charges sometimes let down the faithful supporters but that in matches where the team performed well, credit must be given adding that in matches like the 1-1 draw against Tunisia, it was not his fault that Zambia did not win.
“Why should it always be Renard has done this, Renard has done that. Sometimes we also need praise. I’m happy that you have heard for yourselves how many people are saying good things about us here, but in Zambia …zero,” he said.
The Frenchman said he had now learnt it the harsh way that the best way to remain Zambia coach was to develop a thick skin and just work hard despite the criticism that his team continues to get.
Renard said he was carrying a team of young players who can do with some encouragement from their own people but that all his charges could get was a bashing from the media and supporters who do not even understand the game.
He said Zambian players were left to envy the patriotism shown to their counterparts by the number of journalists and supporters that travelled with other teams for the Africa Cup.
But Chipolopolo Soccer Fans Association (CSFA) chairperson Yotam Mwanza who is here to support the team said Zambian soccer supporters were not against their team but all they wanted was for the team to produce desired results.
He said the soccer fans were proud of the Chipolopolo, except they were sometimes let down by the results that Zambia posted during international matches as well as at tournaments like the Africa Cup.
He said to the contrary, Renard was one of the best supported coaches in the history of the Zambian game considering the amount of money that has been raked in for the national team by the initiative led by Republican President Rupiah Banda.
“Other coaches before him went for long periods without getting their salaries. Apart from that, previous coaches were coaching a less motivated squad that was never sure of when they would get their allowances,” he said.
Mwanza, however, added that it was wrong for armchair critics to target the national team coaches and players wrongly even when there are some positive from the current squad.
The team was yesterday scheduled to shift camp to Bengeula where the Chipolopolo will play their last Group D matches against Gabon on Thursday.
So very true, Renard is a realist and sounds like he is talking about the majority on this blog. For the upteenth time we are not ready yet for the big time but we are on our way there. Experince will get us there, Someone said that just because some of the players were at the last AFCON vup thats experince enough?? What kind of logic is that. How many of our stars are playing big time soccer??? Not many and the few like Jacob are the ones coming to the party!! The above ratings are a joke, u give Ken a 4??? One mistake and he gets a 4??? Mbola gets a 5??? He kept Emmana at bay, and yes he gets beat once and u slap him with a 5? Goes to show u that Renard is right, we want blood out of a ROCK!
Mweene: 7/10 Let one stupid goal go in and two he really was beat by. Made excellent to handed save, but over all was in command of his area AND STILL THE BEST GOALIE IN THE LAND!
Musonda: 7/10 The man shows that experience is vital even at his extended age, a true asset and reliable right back and made one hell of a tackle on a cameroonian attack. Was steady all night against so called world cup attackers!
Chintu: 7/10 Kept the Defence intact, led by example and organised the defence. Held his own against world class attackers Eto and co, this man needs to be playing somewhere other than S.A!
Sunzu: 7/10 The kid is a gem, for someone who has no big league experience and hardly any club gametime to hold his own against eto and co?!! And we still want to pile on him??? at 20??? Yes he should have been concentrating instead of appealing for hand ball, but thats the nature of the beast. Call it growing pains!
Mbola: 7/10 At almost 17, going up against Emmana and co but still holding his own!!! Yes he got beat but what defender does not?? The entire game he held his own but for the onetime he got beat. Look at this trajectory in a year from Minning rangers to Armenia to AFCON cup and he is not even 17. If u guys are giving him 5, i wonder what y’all would give SONG!!!
Nyirenda: 6.5/10 not yet accustomed to defensive mid position but showed no fear and was not star struck. A few clumsy tackles but hel his own against more skill opposition. Fact he can plain in defence bods well for his future.
Felix: 6.5/10 one moment of pure magic and we were up 1-0, give this guy a club he can play at on the regular and he will truly become a star. Not sure what his role was in the entire scheme but he did dissapear for long moments. Still a starter!!
Rainford:7.5/10 this kid is going to be a superstar in the next year or 2. Like Jacob showed what playing competitive soccer does for u on a big stage. showed no stage fright and was agressive against the more illastrious midfield opposition. The freekick responsibility is his for the foreseable future.
Chris:6/10 For a captain to be more or less nonexistant is not acceptable. He needs to stamp his authority on the field and direct things and inspire. 2 misses in 2 games that should have been put away, eto, Torres or Rooney put those away. Thats the difference btwn world class and so so! Perfect PK tho, thats how u take em!
James: 5.5/10 was no impressive in my books, yes he ran agains defenders but lost the ball too easily. ran out of ideas when he got close to the 18 and seemed to be out of sorts! this position my need to be changed for the next game. Overall the man tried his best.
Mulenga: 8.5/10 i hope he has put all the doubts to rest. The boy is growing up right in front of our eyes, and that grit and determination is what everyone on the team should strive for. The MVP FOR ZAMBIA so far with Kalaba a close second. At times it looked like it was him against two defenders and the fact that he plays in a big league is a bonus. No wonder AJAX have shown interest in him.
Team as a whole: 7/10 showed true heart untill that goal then things fell apart. Held there own against world class opposition and showed that the future is bright. We are just a few more high pressure games from being back to a top ten team. To the powers that be, please keep this team together and the coach we are on to something and dont be suprised to see European teams request friendlies from Zambia.
Good Job Renard and co, at least it was not 5-1, my African friends are actually saying positive things about Zambian soccer for once!!!
Whisper on Mon, 18th Jan 2010 7:37 PM
Guys, the truth is that I went to bed angry and frustrated last night. I couldn’t believe that we had thrown away such a glorious opportunity.
I woke up this morning in a more reflective mood and and am now feeling positively proud of the boys. The fact is that we gave the 11th best team in the WORLD the fright of their lives! Cameroon are the top ranked team in Africa. They are ahead of Russia in the Coca Cola rankings. Their players play at some of the biggest clubs in the world, Inter Milan, Arsenal, Rennes, Monaco… Yet we matched them and in many instances outplayed them. Imagine, Thomas Nyirenda from Zanaco matched Makoun of Rennes! Eto’o former Piccicci (top scorer) in Spain, was limited to one harmless shot by 20 year old Sunzu of Zanaco!
I say well done to the boys and to HR. We made one silly mistake and were punished, but that is what happens at this level. That is why when people talk about experience as being a vital component in the mix to make a great player and team. Just look at how Jacob has flourished since moving to Holland. If we had more players applying themselves to the same degree we would have a fantastic squad.
This is the one area that I think we really need to improve. Our mental strength is not as great as it could be. Last night, when Cameroon equalised, rather than cursing our luck and panicking we should have been able to get up and go again. Jacob caused Song and Nkoulou huge problems everytime he ran at them, why did we not just think, ‘time to start supplying the ball to Jacob again’? I agree with someone else on this blog when they say, when we score we think we have won when we concede we think the world is crumbling around us. There is no rationale in Zambia’s play.
As for HR’s observation that Zambia doesn’t get the love that they need from Zambian’s. Well, I think that is mainly down to the number of disappointments that we have had to endure. How many times have we given away leads with a silly error? How many times have we snatched defeat from the jaws of victory? How many times have we played teams off the park and still lost? That is why Zambian’s are cautious of supporting Chipolopolo, we are simply protecting our hearts because we have had them broken so many times. It’s like when we were young and there was a girl that you really liked, but you were mean to her because you didn’t want to show how you really felt just incase you were rejected. If we continue to perform with character, desire and passion, then the support will return. HR must remember that he is new to the team, he doesn’t know the pain that we have had to endure. He doesn’t know how many false dawns we have awoken to. He doesn’t know the pain of following Chipolopolo.
Whisper on Mon, 18th Jan 2010 7:39 PM
I should say that when I mention Eto’s harmless shot I meant to add, ‘in the first half’. The shot he scored with obvioulsy wasn’t harmless
.
John Chinena, Liteta on Mon, 18th Jan 2010 8:01 PM
The line-up HR shud have used is simple mweene-kasonde-muzo-kampamba-sunzu (tho 6 more lyk it)-feligoal-kalaba-chris-jacob-mayuka-cliff pace is all we need thats all, the best defence is attack!
Anonymous on Mon, 18th Jan 2010 9:10 PM
I agree with shadbeat that at this level the game is about more than just skill. Zambia is normally the mo skilful bt we always lack mental stamina thats why we can hardly ever maintain a lead. As a professional psychologist I can almost always read the nerves among the zambian players right before almost every game. This is the reason why we can record good results against teams like N and S Korea but when the pressure is on…e.g. homeground games, cosafa final, nw even cecafa, AFCON etc what do u kno…Mweene can allow such balls to crawl in. Hence the calls to fuse in even just a few experienced players such as Sinkala etc on that score and have a coach thats able to psych the players mentally e.g J.Morihno style…something i doubt Herve is able to do. The problem is professionals hav no place in this country such as shrinks like us. Other teams hav psychologists or atleast a coach with such skills. With us its a mental problem, u could see the difference in the mental attitude with cameroon. Otherwise the team is not bad, quite skilful reali. Except we’ll keep wonderng why we play so wel but dont hav the results to show for it. We lack MENTAL STAMINA. anyway GOOD TRY GUYS!
kk11 on Mon, 18th Jan 2010 9:29 PM
@Anonymous
U gain experience by playing the games, not relying on old so called veterans. I think the Sinkala & Tana issues is dead what we have now is the future and all these games they have played will stand us in good stead in the near future. They are gaining the experience as we speak.
Jojo on Mon, 18th Jan 2010 11:31 PM
Algeria have qualified ahead of Mali due to the head to head record between the two,what that means is that if we beat gabon by any margin we are through,destiny is in our own hands,we do not have to watch the game with a calculator by the side,the good news is that gabon do not seem to score a lot of goals,but the bad news is they dont seem to conceed many either,but from the way we have played so far we deserve to be in the quarter finals,we have outplayed both tunisia and cameroon surely we cannot fail to beat gabon,people have rightly been saying we failed to beat both tunisia and cameroon because they are more experienced than us,but now are facing an opponent who should be less experienced than us at this level,i do not know much about gabons football history but we have players who have been at the last 2 editions of the afcon,the experience they have gained has to start showing,not only that we also have a striker in the form of his life…….
Uwe on Tue, 19th Jan 2010 2:20 AM
the malware warnings are back :/
desire on Tue, 19th Jan 2010 3:55 AM
what if cameroon draw with tunisia and zambia wins who goes top who goes 2end coz it will be 3 teams with 4 points!!
bubble malitoli says on Tue, 19th Jan 2010 5:08 AM
So much talk ofhow fans do not support the team…I think we are expecting at minimum for the team to play the basics of football well..that means defending a lead, set piece defending…we expect a national team player to not make rudimentary mistakes…and not to have a team leading up to 2/3 of the match only to throw it away. If a team is playing well against a team with an off day then we ask that we exploit. That to our advantage and not the reverse…a team with an off day beating a team playing well….le guen made the precise changes that led to a win….that means he read the game better than HR??? Zambians must be realistic he says….but being realistic is expecting national team players to mark and contest each ball,to expect national team players to have positional sense…and to expect a national team coach to make changes as the situation mitigates. What is realistic is to expect zambia to beat gabon because zambia has been to 14 africa cups, have been to the final twice, and have been third place winners four times. Gabon has not achieved anything close to that….Mr.HR that is being realistic…so deliver
mulusa on Tue, 19th Jan 2010 5:42 AM
WE SHOULD PLAY 4.3.3 A VERY STRONG DEFENCE.. WITH MULENGA,MBESUMA,CHAMANGA UPFRONT..THESE STRIKERS WILL DESTROY ANY DEFENCE AT THE TOURNAMENT…THEN CHRISTOPHER AND FELIX ON MID-WING WITH KALABA PLAYIN THE SUPPORTIVE MID FIELDER SUPPLYIN THE BALL..KALABA CAN BE EASLY SUB 4 CHANSA OR MAYUKA..DEFENDERS HAVE TO BE ON POINT AND GABON WILL FALL
k.bwalwa on Tue, 19th Jan 2010 7:50 AM
H.R is saying the truth, we the least patriotic fans in africa. HR has his own short comings, but lets support the team. we are playing the best football since we beat South Africa 3-0 in jo burg eons ago.
Spaks on Tue, 19th Jan 2010 8:06 AM
Ill keep it short and nasty, im proud to be Zambian, i know that we are on the path to a great recovery
Fred shimbi on Tue, 19th Jan 2010 8:15 AM
The match with Cameroon is water under the bridge, lets move forward and focus on Gabon. Mweene and the entire Team should concentrate for the entire period of the match to avoid getting a poor result against Gabon. We have a highly skilled Team which can face any Team in the World provided they are psyched and made to believe in themselves – its high time we engage a psychologist on our Technical bench. Whatever the results, we need to maintain the Team and fuse in just a few players for continuity and for future glory.
Asilikale on Tue, 19th Jan 2010 8:43 AM
Head to head performance whn we hammer Gabon wilb out of question, it wilb goal agregate,gabön has one goal,zambia 3goals.
The game we played cameroon are the games Tana n the Billy,Nketani defence used to defend frm centre and then we knew we are wining,does any one remember how Tana used to deal with goals kicks,the all time defender had somthng i dnt evn c in world best defenders,like the John Terry,he wouldnt dare how strong the short wud be but wud come and head it away in mid frm defence.When we are down Tana wud fight and score an equaliser,but gone are the days.
Evn if Mweene Sunzu,Mbola made mistakes i blame the Coach wrong substitution.
Staff Sargeant on Tue, 19th Jan 2010 8:55 AM
The Chipolopolo boys played their hearts out. The Cameroun game is now water under the bridge we simply need to bury Gabon which l hasten to say is not a mammoth task and we are through. Chipolopolo you can do it
Asilikale on Tue, 19th Jan 2010 8:56 AM
Zambia 2 vs 1 Gabon .
Zambia is going to be a second team in G-d to qualify with either Tunisia or cameroon,believe me,we cnt make same mistake for a 3rd time,big NO.
Sorry am proud of our players,its just that truth pains thus y whn we are correctd for a gud coz we nid sympathy or epathy we feel like (ukwangala kwachilo lupwa)Friendshp is better than family.
Herve maybe ua ryt maybe ua wrong,coz am nt a spokes person evn for a bad zambian soccer fan who support Cameroon.
chamz on Tue, 19th Jan 2010 9:07 AM
I don’t think you are as neutral as you want us to believe, you are one of those people who are so negative about this team and the coach. I am not against that, that your opinion. But what I don’t agree with you is pretending that you support the team, when they are doing fine. I believe a lot of people of this blog, are just waiting for Zambia to be kicked out so that they can justify what they have been saying all along. Yes Tana was a good defender but he is now about 35 or even 40. Yes the young boys like Sunzu are making mistakes but thats how you grow. HR took out Kalaba and Felix because they were injured. Anyway, the people you cry for Chansa and Kasonde and Mayuka did not make a difference. Does this thing not sure us that HR is right? Look at Jacob, so many bad things have been said about him on this blog but the coach has kept the faith in him and now, you guys like him. HR is not perfect, I agree, our team is not polished, yes but us fans also are wrong many times. By the way, the last time your Nketeni let in 5 goals the last time. How did Nketeni play for Zambia? Cameroun were just luck on the day.
Mabbwana on Tue, 19th Jan 2010 9:28 AM
Relatively, the ratings are okay, Iwould just raise the baseline to reflect a gallant performance by our lads.
If results are anything to go by, we have improved. We can defend, and we are scoring. We need to work on our concetration through the games. The two teams played so far tore us apart in previous encounters.
What we seem to be lacking is the punch to kill off a game.
Kashman on Tue, 19th Jan 2010 9:59 AM
Any win by Zambia against Gabon will see the Chipolopolo thru that is why Algeria are in the Quater finals coz they Beat Mali 2-0 Conceded 3 against Malawi but scored 1, goal difference 0, Mali on the other hand had a goal difference of 0 well but were beaten by Algeria so it was head to head.
Big Steve from SA on Tue, 19th Jan 2010 10:04 AM
Non patriotism has always been a Zambian problem from way back when. We have this thing that anything not Zambian is better. Zambians even think every foreigner is better than them. South africans and Americans have zenophobic tendancies, Zambians have inferiority issues. Away from that I think Fred is right we need to move forward. We have a decider on our hands and to make matters worse all four teams in the group need wins to advance making this a really tight group that will be decided only after all 180 minutes are played on Thursday. The boys need to be focused and give it there all. If kenedy is still down and out about the silly mistake the coach should consider the other two keepers cause he might come into the game with an over cautious attitude. Kalilo for me has had no game time this season so would be last on the pecking order but with all that we have the mantle to beat Gabon. We have not won a single game in the group stage yet so lets make our first win count the most, the win that took us to the quarters.
dot com on Tue, 19th Jan 2010 11:57 AM
No more going with calculators in the next game….its DO or DIE!!
Go Zambia Go!
One Zambia One chipolopolo!
Kazak on Tue, 19th Jan 2010 12:20 PM
Its amazing that nobody questioned the goal that Mweene allowed in and you all accepts it as an error. Was it????
Do not be too passionate. There is big money involved.
I do not accept that goal as a goalkeeper mistake. Too many coincidences of goalkeepers errors during the CAN.
Maybe the truth will be revealed one day.
In the meantime, I have my doubts
Dinamo on Tue, 19th Jan 2010 12:31 PM
@chamz
CHAMZ I like your objectivity but I think you are offside on this one my man.Its not easy in Zambia for a player to grow after making mistakes e.g
1.Despite being the best fullback in Zambia at the moment Laughter Chilembi has been forgotten for the mistake he made in the game against Senegal.
2.Nkhetani and Billy went after those school boy mistakes at the lask AFCON.
3.Hichani Himonde is also slowly fading after the COSAFA final
4.Maybe you can remember what people said about Great Kalu when a missed a penalty etc
Thats the trend pa Zed mudala.
We don’t hate HR we just question some of the decisions he makes.
Sunzu has the potential to be a very solid centre back but at this AFCON the right thing was to use him as a holding midfielder.Yes, he has been able to defend well in a number of occasions but due to the fact that he is knew in that position he allowed that Tunisian striker to run into the box and equalise after he appealed for hand ball before challenging for the ball (a silly mistake which a natural centre back can not afford to make at this level).In the Cameroun game, though off-form Mbola was the main culprit for the second goal,Sunzu again errored when he started appealing for hand ball before challenging for the ball (had he remained in motion,Eto’o could have been challenged).For the third goal ,Sunzu went for the opponent instead of jumping for the ball first time,when he tried to head the ball the opponent had already won it (any centre back will tell you that what was required in that tussle were simple basics….called number one in football language).We are talking of Sunzu being involved in 3 out of the 4 goals we have so far allowed at this AFCON and for this I TOTALY DISAGREE WITH ZAMFOOTS RATING OF SUNZU.HR shouldn’t expect Sunzu to make blunders the entire 90 minutes for him to be convinced that there is a ploblem in that role,a summary of how we have allowed the 4 goals can help him make a conclusion on how this exellent natural midfielder he wants to convert into a centre back at such a big tournament has perfomed in his new role.If I may ask,why didn’t HR convert Sunzu in the qualifiers or small tourneys like COSAFA than taking this risk at the AFCON?.What has suddenly happened to Dennis Banda?.Chris has been below par in the last 2 games and so is Mbola and it is also evident that Nyirenda isn’t the best player we could have played in that role.C’mon people Sunzu could have been a revelation of a Zambian Viera if he was played oin the right role so you mean to be good fans we shouldn’t voice out our observations???.
Boyfriend on Tue, 19th Jan 2010 1:56 PM
Of course we have supported chipo… through our tax payers moaney but the lads needs moral support too. look at the handful of Z- soccer fans in Angola. somehow i feel HR has a pint come and join us here in ANG… However i dont like the white jersey it does not represent Z at all.
Chao! iyeeee chipolopolox1000
emuzo on Tue, 19th Jan 2010 2:05 PM
zambian game has gone up tremendously.keep it up boys.
jc on Tue, 19th Jan 2010 4:31 PM
I think Chris Katongo is becoming a liability and should not start against Gabon. Mbola also showed that this level may be too big for him. He should also not start. Jacob should also take chances. There was a situation when he could have easily scored a second goal. Felix Katongo needs to be replaced with Cliford. I wachted the Match on SABC and Marks Maponyana and Mark Gleeson said a lot about Felix how the potential he showed at the Cosafa under 20 has just waned.
fiberglass mesh on Wed, 20th Jan 2010 10:30 AM
we have allowed the 4 goals can help him make a conclusion on how this exellent natural midfielder he wants to convert into a centre back at such a big tournament has perfomed in his new role.If I may ask,why didn’t HR convert Sunzu in the qualifiers or small tourneys like COSAFA than taking this risk at the AFCON?.What has suddenly happened to Dennis Banda?.Chris has been below par in the