It could have been worse

The nation's morale would have sunk to its lowest levels had Nigeria scored the penalty and went on to win last night's match against the African Champions - Zambia.

In the game against the Nigerians, the Chipolopolo looked short of the form that helped them win the Africa Cup trophy for the first time in their history. A bad Mbombela pitch in Nelspruit contributed to the lack of precision but it could not be entirely faulted as both sides struggled to find cohesion. Herve Renard's charges created a few chances in the first half. Rainford Kalaba was the first to threaten sending his shot just over the angle of the post and bar. Chisamba Lungu's free kick was pushed away by Vincent Enyama and defender Stoppila Sunzu headed wide from another set piece. The Super Eagles had their own set of chances and could have put the match to rest had Chelsea's John Mikel scored from a spot kick in the first half. The Nigerians increased their pace after the break and Emmanuel Emenike could have scored had Armed Musa played him at the far post rather than choosing to shoot himself. Emenike later cut inside his man and slotted in to open the scoring for the Super Eagles but they were denied by a controversial penalty decision. Kennedy Mwene stepped forward to set his own record as the first stopper to score a goal in open play in the entire tournament's history.  

It was the same old story of Zambian players failing to convert clear chances into goals as we have witnessed in the past one year or so. I am one of those who are skeptical about the Chipolopolo's chances of making it out of group C. This doesn't mean am not patriotic but am being a realist. I can be called all sorts of names by some who think we can do well at this tournament and even threatened by others who believe that prayers alone will guarantee Zambia success.

As they say statistics don't lie. And if you take time to analyse Zambia's past performance since winning the AFCON in Gabon, you would see that we have not been good in front of goal. Our team has averaged one goal per match which is not a good thing especially when you are playing at tournaments like the Africa Cup because goals can decide which teams progress in case of any tie. Let's take the last match that the team is going to play against Burkina Faso for example. This is both a simple and crucial match at the same time. Crucial in the sense that all we need is a win by any scoreline because by doing so the team will amass five points and top the group if Nigeria lose or draw. I would say tough because all the Stallions (Burkina Faso) need is a draw to secure top spot regardless of the results in the other match. The four goals they put past Ethiopia despite being a man down have given them a plus and belief that they can go all the way to the finals. They are a good team after all with exciting players like Alain Traore and Jonathan Pitroipa. These are the two most dangerous players that we have to guard against when we meet on Tuesday.

The Zambian team is full of talented young men who can rise to the occasion and beat Burkina Faso to sail through to the quarter finals but one thing is standing in our way to do so. We don't have natural great ball finishers who can be compared to the likes of Kalusha Bwalya who had scored in that match against Burkina Faso when the two teams met at the 1996 Africa Cup in South Africa. Where can we get a player of the late Kelvin Mutale's calibre, someone who could score three goals in one match? When are we going to see midfielders and defenders like Elijah Litana score goals when the strikers have been tightly marked, where? Why are we not clinical with free kicks and other set pieces like corners? These are the questions that Renard and his assistants must find answers to as they drill the team to take on Burkina Faso.

We also have very good reasons to remain positive as Zambia take on Burkina Faso in the last fixture of Group C.  Zambia has never lost to their opponents at the Africa Cup. The Chipolopolo beat the Stallions 5-1 during the 1996 Africa Cup in South Africa and posted a 1 all draw in another AFCON match in 2000.

The Chipolopolo should count themselves lucky to have scored that soft penalty against the Super Eagles of Nigeria to earn a valuable point. In many cases that foul would have earned Mayuka a yellow card for going down too easily. So it will be wise of us if we can utilise the only chance that we have against Burkina Faso. The good thing about this fixture is that fate is in our own hands because we just have to win this match. There are no permutations from the other encounter between Nigeria and Ethiopia unless we complicate matters by drawing in our fixture.

Is Zambia keeping the goals for the Africa Cup?

The Zambian fans know what it is like to participate in the Africa Cup having watched their team take part in 15 finals this far. The team twice lost in the finals to Zaire as Congo DR was known in 1974 and 1994 against Nigeria. Despite the team’s triumph in last year’s finals, the fans are keeping their hopes low because of Zambia’s lacklustre performances since that famous win against Ivory Coast. 

The scoreless stalemate for Zambia in a practice match against Norway has not helped matters ahead of the Africa Cup tournament kicking off in South Africa on Saturday 19, January. Preparatory matches for a team often referred to as the Chipolopolo (Copper Bullets) have been far from impressive and “chaotic” in other words. Many soccer fans and pundits had hoped for a win against Norway to reinvigorate the waning euphoria that greeted the nation when the team won the Africa Cup last year but this was never to be. 

The people have reasons to be worried. The reigning African champions have not won a single match in all the friendlies that they have played so far, losing to Saudi Arabia (2-1), Tanzania (1-0), Angola (2-0) and drawing against Norway. The other source of concern is the team’s inability to score goals. From the time the team was crowned African champions, they have not scored more than two goals in a single match. These statistics have further aggravated the nation’s fears about their team’s ability or inability to defend the trophy.  

When team coach Herve Renard was asked whether he was worried about his team’s failure to put the ball behind the net after the Norway match. The French man gave a cheeky response, “we are keeping the goals for the Africa Cup”. Renard and his charges will have to prove this when they take on minnows Ethiopia in their opening match on Monday 21 in Johannesburg.  

There is some consolation though because a similar pattern of results was recorded before the nations cup in Gabon and Equatorial Guinea. The other source of comfort is in the fact that Renard has retained 19 of the 23 players who took part in last year’s finals. Notable inclusions are Jacob Mulenga, the player who missed the tournament due to injury and a tournament debutant Mukuka Mulenga who was voted 2012 Zambian footballer of the year. These two players will add another dimension to the team that triumphed in Gabon and Mulenga might be a solution for Zambia in front of goals. Many players in the team are still unknown to the world but key midfield players like Rainford Kalaba, Nathan Sinkala and Chisamba Lungu have great individual skill capable of disturbing any defences in Africa. They showed this by ripping apart Ghana, Senegal and even Ivory Coast on their way to winning the trophy. 

Team captain, Christopher Katongo, the 2012 BBC African Footballer of the year will lead his peers when the team takes to the field in South Africa. In Emmanuel Mayuka, the top scorer at last year’s finals, Zambia can look to impress. He is one player you can choose to ignore at your own peril. Ask the Ghanaians, they will tell you what the Southampton FC striker is capable of doing. He broke the hearts of the Black Stars when he scored the deciding goal in the semi-finals of 2012 for Zambia to win the tie 1-0. The defence led by Stoppila Sunzu, the man who scored the deciding penalty in the final and Hichani Himonde is probably the best backline on the African continent. Sunzu is already attracting interests from top European teams and is currently in England finalising his pending move to Reading. Kennedy Mweene in goal is another star with plenty of experience in that area. 

There are good reasons also to be hopeful. South Africa is second home to Zambia as many of our players play or have played in that country in their careers. The team will therefore have more support from the the locals and Zambians based in that country. This group has also been together for a long time to understand each other well and deliver the positive results. In fact many of them are either playing together at TP Mazembe or at least meet every week during matches in South Africa. The team has also received adequate support from government and the corporate world; hence shading off worries about winning bonuses and upkeeps during the tournament.