Zambia began their 2025 COSAFA Championship campaign with a disappointing 1-0 defeat to Comoros.

A defensively disciplined Comoros side proved difficult to break down and capitalized on a rare opportunity when Ibrahim Madi scored the only goal of the match. The striker headed home from close range following a corner, taking advantage of a misjudgment by goalkeeper Lawrence Mulenga, who failed to deal with the ball’s flight.

Reacting after the match, Chipolopolo head coach Wedson Nyirenda maintained a positive outlook despite the result.

“I think it was a wonderful game I saw from my boys. We were on top of the opponents for most of the the times of the the game,” he said during the post-match press conference. “Having the 90% of our players being [debutants] in international football, we’re giving them a chance to become mature. So I think they didn’t disappoint.”

Following the loss, Zambia sits at the bottom of Group D with zero points and must beat Botswana on Wednesday to have any hope of advancing to the semifinals. Only the top team in the group will qualify for the last four.

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