By SHAMAOMA MUSONDA –

THE Zambian football family has lamented Zambia’s shock loss to Tunisia at the ongoing 2015 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Equatorial Guinea having creating enough chances to win the match.
The 2-1 loss left the Chipolopolo in a must win situation against Cape Verde on Monday but will need a favour from Tunisia, who will need to either beat or draw with Congo DR to gift Zambia a passage into the quarterfinals.
Football Association of Zambia (FAZ) president Kalusha Bwalya described the loss as painful especially that the Chipolopolo played well and dominated their North African opponents.
“Chipolopolo played so well in both halves, we had many chances and at this level when you create chances, you make them count or you will pay. And at the end of it, we have no points to show for it. It’s painful,” Kalusha said.
Chipolopolo Soccer Fans Association (CSFA) chairperson Yotham Mwanza could not stomach his disappoint of the loss and remained hopeful of a knockout stage place.
Mwanza said the match was one of the most winnable games the Chipolopolo has played at the AFCON in years.
He said having dominated so much and created a lot of chances meant the game should have been an easy win for Zambia but selfish play from the players ended up harming the team.
Mwanza said that it was unfortunate that after taking the lead, Zambia lost control of the game collapsed towards the end and allowed the Tunisians to fight back and snatch the win.
“It’s good the coach Honour Janza saw where the players made mistakes and I am hopeful he makes the decisive actions on that. We cannot lose matches so easily when we should have won,” he said.
Zambia Sports Fans Association (ZASPOFA) strongman Peter Makembo described the Chipolopolo’s loss as unfortunate but insisted that not all was lost.
He said it was surprising that Zambia could lose such a game and asked the players to keep their focus and make sure they do their part by winning the next game and hope for the best in the other game.
Zambia Football Coaches Association (ZAFCA) vice president Lewis Shambulo said not all hope was lost as the Chipolopolo still had a chance to reach the quarterfinals.
Shambulo said the only disadvantage for Janza was that he was handicapped when it comes to team selection but backed him to come up with a team that can beat cape Verde.
“Not all hope is lost, the team played well save for tactical errors and they should not feel pressure heading into Monday’s game because they can still bring back joy by qualifying to the quarterfinals,” he said.