From ELIAS CHIPEPO
in Jeju –
COACH Beston Chambeshi said the match against Germany was not easy as he hailed Zambia’s historic qualification into the quarterfinals here at the ongoing FIFA Under-20 World Cup finals.
Chambeshi, who become the first coach to lead Zambia into the quarterfinals of this competition, watched on from the touchline as his team came from a goal down to lead 3-1.
Then saw that lead squandered as a determined Germany scored two late goals and earned a 3-3 draw at 90 minutes and forced the tie into extra time.

CHAMBESHI

Shemmy Mayembe gifted Zambia the hard fought qualification in the 106th minute to see the African champions win the intense tie and reach the last eight at the World Cup level for the first time following two failed attempts in 1999 and 2007.
Chambeshi said the tactic was to avoid conceding early because he was aware the Germans would go for an early goal.
“It wasn’t an easy game and especially if you are playing a team like Germany. I am happy with the result and would not want to find any faults at this moment because this was a knockout and you take the result,” he said.
This win also served as revenge for Zambia who suffered a 4-0 annihilation at the hands of Germany on September 25 during the Seoul 1988 Olympics.
Chambeshi said he experienced a lot of pain as a footballer and vowed to become a winner adding that he was happy with his achievements so far.
“Yes I was part of that team that lost badly to Germany and I am happy to be part of this historic event. I suffered a lot as a player and I am glad things are getting better and it’s nice to be part of this winning group,” he said.
Chambeshi said he was happy the players remained resolute after Germany had taken the lead. He said the plan was to hold on till 30 minutes without conceding before pushing for a goal.
“Unfortunately our plan didn’t work but I am happy how the players responded in the second half scoring three goals. And that is not easy when you play a team like Germany that also wants to win. But our tactical approach won us the game,” he said.
Chambeshi also defended midfielder Boyd Musonda who had a bad game following his misplaced passes as well as losing possession easily.
“Yes Boyd has been my anchor man and needed someone like that in such a game because of the Germany team psych, he made some errors but we needed him to contend the taller Germans and in that area he did well,” he said.
Germany coach Guido Streichsbier said his side collapsed in the second half allowing Zambia to score three times before responding late in the game.
Streichsbier said Zambia were worthy winners and wished them well in the remaining games.
“We played a good first half then we lost the rhythm in the second half but we managed to score deep into the game which was good but again we failed to contain the Zambians in extra time. I didn’t have enough players to match Zambia’s system of play,” he said.
He expressed sadness that his team exited the competition but blamed it on poor preparations that saw most players fail to report for camp owing to the play-offs in the league.
“Zambia was today the worthy winner, my boys tried and tried but we just could not match our opponents’ fighting spirit,” he said.