Indeed compact Chipolopolo

IT CAME to pass as Argentina clobbered Zambia 5-0 in an international friendly at La Bombonera Stadium in Buenos Aires last Wednesday.
Four days earlier, Argentina struggled to beat Mauritania at the same venue.
The world champions won 2-1 against Mauritania, who are ranked 115th globally.
Argentina are third while Zambia occupy the 92nd position.
I concur with interim coach George Lwandamina, who wants Chipolopolo to be compact going forward.
Yes, losing is part of the game but the margin matters.
If Mauritania can stand tall against Lionel Messi and other Argentina stars, why should we be beaten by a big margin?
Losing 5-0 was too much.
In an interview, Lwandamina said Chipolopolo have learnt the importance of staying compact after Argentina tore them apart.
He attributed the five goals conceded to errors.
“Exactly not what we had anticipated. We learnt so many lessons out of this game, like conceding in the first three minutes, again conceding in the last three minutes of the first half. Again in the second half conceding in the last 10 minutes, which unsettled us.
Anyway, we played a highly tactical team,” Lwandamina said.
“We have to be very, very organised, play compact and try to move forward away from our box so that we can force even the other team to make mistakes at their goal and capitalise on the same.”Coaches have a lot of work to do ahead of the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations (AfCON) qualifiers.
The qualifying round will run from September to November this year with the continental showpiece to be staged in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda.
For some time, Chipolopolo have been vulnerable in defence.
We need to make it hard for opponents to score against us.
The defence should be tight at all times while strikers should make sure they find the net always.
Against Russia in an international friendly in Moscow on March 25, 2025, Zambia lost 5-0.
Other losses in friendlies were 3-1 to South Africa, 3-2 to Angola and 2-0 to Democratic Republic of Congo.
We are sure Lwandamina and his technical bench will tighten the defence.
We are happy to witness upsets in the 2026 Absa Cup.Football being a funny odd game, minnows made headlines on Sunday and Monday.
National League side Chirundu United and Southern Province Division One outfit Play It Forward (PIF) have advanced to the quarter-finals.
In the round-of-16 fixtures at Nkoloma Stadium in Lusaka, Chirundu beat Super League giants Kabwe Warriors 4-3 on postmatch penalties after a 2-2 draw in regulation time while PIF overcame National League side Makeni All Stars 2-1.
The Football Association of Zambia (FAZ) executive should ensure they bring more companies on board to sponsor cup competitions.
We need to go back to those days when cup competitions took centre stage.
We should not be content with the prestigious Absa Cup.
There is need for rural teams to be displaying their talent in several cup competitions and by so doing, players will be marketing themselves.
The Keith Mweemba-led FAZ executive is 11 months old in office and there is no excuse for failing to lure companies to sponsor cup competitions.
Players and coaches are yearning for cup competitions, and Mweemba and company have a duty to deliver what they promised during campaigns.
Enjoy the beautiful game and find me on phiristeve4@gmail.com, sphiri@daily-mail.co.zm