Zambia head coach George Lwandamina has noted that his players were timid coming up with big names, as well as the chanting crowd at La Bombonera Stadium in Buenos Aires.
The Chipolopolo endured a long night as they suffered a 5-0 defeat to the Lionel Scaloni-led Albiceleste side.
Argentina opened the scores in the fourth minute through Julián Álvarez before Lionel Messi doubled the lead before the halftime break. The hosts continued to dominate as they added more goals in the 50th minute, as Nicolas Otamendi scored from the spot kick before Dominic Chanda scored an own goal in the 68th minute, as Valentin Barco wrapped up the night with an additional time strike.
Speaking in a post-match interview, Lwandamina admitted that the players might have been intimidated by the atmosphere and pedigree of the players they were facing.
He also observed that the environment forced the players to make mistakes through incomplete passes, leading to easy goals from the Argentine side.
“We were slightly timid, playing with the big names and the chanting of people, but we were trying to come out of the shell and try to string some passes,” noted Lwandamina. “We were even threatening, but in all, we were strong, though we made mistakes. They just scored out of our mistakes.”
Lwandamina Highlights Key Lessons for Chipolopolo
The veteran gaffer said the team have learnt lessons, especially on how to remain compact at the back and midfield, including the transition from defence into attack.
Lwandamina noted that the mental strength and concentration of the players were tested on the night as they faced a highly tactical side.
“Not what we had anticipated. So many lessons out of this game, like conceding in one minute, conceding in the first 3 minutes, again conceding in the last 3 minutes of the first half, again in the second half, and conceding in the last 10 minutes and 3 minutes, which unsettled us. We played a highly tactical team,” Lwandamina stated.
“We have to be very, very organised, play compact and try to move forward away from our box so that we can force even the other team to make mistakes at their goal and capitalise on the same.”
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