Former Zambia National Team head coach Patrice Beaumelle has hailed the Chipolopolo Boys for putting up a strong fight despite missing several key players in their friendly match against Angola.

Zambia suffered a narrow 3-2 defeat to Angola on Tuesday in the second of their two international friendly matches, having earlier lost 3-1 to Bafana Bafana last Saturday. The back-to-back fixtures formed part of the teams’ preparations for the Morocco 2025 Africa Cup of Nations, which kicks off on December 21.

The Chipolopolo were without striker Patson Daka, who was recalled by his club, and captain Lubambo Musonda, who missed the match due to illness, while Kings Kangwa and Lameck Banda missed the friendlies due to injury and family commitment, respectively.

It was like an AFCON game- Beaumelle

Beaumelle, who served as Hervé Renard’s assistant during the 2012 AFCON before later taking over as head coach, acknowledged that the Chipolopolo made the contest difficult for his side.

“I knew that it was going to be a tough game because I know Zambia; they were African champions in 2012. Always a tough game because Zambia has pure talent with a lot of players, and I know that they had some issues after the game with Bafana Bafana,” he said.

“They had some problems with some players who didn’t manage to travel, like Patson Daka, who went back to his club, and Lubambo Musonda, the captain, who is sick, but I knew that it was a tough game. Congratulations because it was not easy to play in such conditions, but you gave us a very tough game. It was a clear game like at the Africa Cup of Nations, so I wish you all the best at the Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco.”

Zambia is placed in Group A alongside Morocco, Comoros, and Mali.

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