By MOSES CHIMFWEMBE At Levy Mwanawasa Stadium –
Zesco 1 Ferroviario 0 (Agg 1-0)
ZESCO United yesterday progressed to the second round of the 2014 CAF Confederations Cup thanks to a convincing victory in a must win encounter against Mozambican opponents Ferroviario da Beira.
It was coach George Lwandamina’s first victory at the helm of the Ndola outfit having been in change for only his second game.
Zesco took the lead courtesy of Winston Kalengo’s 34th minute strike and it was enough to sink Ferroviario’s ambitions of sailing to the next round of the competition.
Maybin Mwaba, who was left out of the team for the first leg, dribbled passed two defenders in the box and crossed the ball on the mouth of goal and Kalengo made no mistake to hit the back of the net with a relatively easy tap, much to the delight of home fans.
Having played the first leg to a 0-0 draw last Sunday in Mozambique, both teams approached this game with some caution, creating just a few scoring chances.
The opening 25 minutes of the game saw little of goalmouth action, with the teams effectively cancelling each other out.
Lazarous Kambole squandered a glorious chance to put Zesco ahead on 26 minutes when he sent his shot wide with only goalkeeper Willard Manyatera to beat.
Zesco had the edge in terms of pace and athleticism, but Ferroviario were well-organised at the back until Mwaba, the home team’s most potent attacking weapon in the game exposed the loopholes and set up the goal for Kalengo.
As expected, the home team dominated possession and looked to have the measure of an uncertain Ferroviario backline but they could not make the few chances they created count.
The visitors could not get a grip on the game and had lost the rhythm but there were also a few moments of real quality in the last 10 minutes of the game, none more so than a sumptuous strike from the largely anonymous Zefanias Matsinhe, who sent his short range strike over the bar after Bornwell Silengo gave away possession.
Renildo Mandava would have restored parity for the visitors but missed the ball on the mouth of goal and Zesco held on to the lead till the final whistle.