Zambia needed a draw against the Atlas Lions on Wednesday at the Laurent Pokou Stadium in San Pedro to advance to the Round of 16, but the 2022 FIFA World Cup semifinalists were determined to finish first in Group F.
Hakim Ziyech scored his first goal of the tournament in the 38th minute. The Turkish-based star capitalized on Lawrence Mulenga’s save to make it 1-0 and bring Zambia’s campaign to an end.
Following the match, Chipolopolo coach Avram Grant expressed his pride in his players for putting up a valiant fight against Africa’s number-one team.
“I am very proud of the players,” he told a press conference at the Laurent Pokou stadium. “They showed a lot of character in the first two games and today. In the second half, we dominated the game and we deserved a goal.
“It’s not easy to play against them [Morocco]. I think we did well to stop them. We knew that we needed to close them down. We made some good attacks. I think it’s pretty to do it against such a good team, and they scored from a mistake.”
Grant slams Beninese referee again
Grant partly attributed Zambia’s elimination to Beninese referee Djindo Louis Houngnandande, who officiated Chipolopolo’s second game against Tanzania, in which he red-carded defender Rodrick Kabwe and issued four yellow cards, including one to the former Chelsea manager.
“It cost us because if there had been other referees, I am sure we would be to the second round even before this game [against Morocco], but what can I do? “These things are not in my hands,” Grant complained.
“I think Zambia has made a lot of progress. I am very proud of the boys and everybody in Zambia can be proud of them. They gave everything; they were fighting and showed a lot of good football but unfortunately, we needed to put the ball in the net.”
