The Zambia Women’s National Team suffered their first defeat at the Levy Mwanawansa on Friday night, falling 1-2 against Morocco’s Atlas Lionesses.
The Copper Queens, who are chasing their second consecutive Olympic qualification after representing Africa in the previous Olympics, dominated ball possession from the start but were unable to break the deadlock.
Zambia won a penalty in the 33rd minute, but Mexico-based forward Prisca Chilufya failed to convert it. They were then held on a counterattack 12 minutes later, with Zineb Redouani netting the opening goal in the 45th minute to put the visitors ahead 1-0 at halftime.
In the second half, both Zambia and Morocco had a number of chances, and with time running out, the Copper Queens found the back of the net through Bay FC record signing Racheal Kundananji, who curled home a beautiful goal in the 69th minute, but it was controversially ruled out for offside after the centre referee and her assistant made opposing decisions before agreeing.
Zambia persisted in their search for an equalizer, and it came in the 80th minute when Lushomo Mweemba headed home a free kick.
When it appeared that the match would end in a tie with heavy rain in Ndola, Morocco made another counterattack, and Tottenham Hotspur forward Rosella Ayane scored the winner in the 90th minute after goalkeeper Eunice Sakala seemingly lost concentration.
Mwape and Vilda reactions
Reacting after the match, Zambia’s coach, Bruce Mwape, remains optimistic that his side can come back in the second leg and qualify for the Olympics.
“We did not play well, especially in the second half; we made mistakes that we could have avoided but we can’t blame anyone,” he said. “We still have 90 minutes to play, so we are not going there just to fulfil the fixture; we are going there to make sure we carry the day. The game hasn’t finished yet.”
Mwape also felt the match officials made some questionable decisions but he wouldn’t cry over spilled milk, stating that he just saw the Moroccans “harassing the assistant referee” before Kundananji’s goal was disallowed.
Meanwhile, Morocco’s coach, Jorge Vilda, commended his team for fighting till they won.
“I am very proud of my players for fighting till the end. They just showed that Morocco never gives up and we will look to seal the tie at home,’ he stated.
The second leg between Zambia and Morocco will be held on Tuesday next week in Rabat, with the aggregate winner booking a ticket to Paris for the Olympics.
