Bruce Mwape and his Copper Queens ended their debut FIFA World Cup campaign with an impressive 3-1 win over Costa Rica on Monday.
Goals from Green Buffaloes defender Lushomo Mweemba, skipper Barbra Banda, and Madrid CFF forward Racheal Kundananji were enough to secure a historic World Cup victory for the 2022 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) bronze medalists.
Costa Rica scored their only goal through Melissa Herrera to exit the competition without a win.
READ MORE: How Zambia ended their World Cup debut with a historic win
Meanwhile, Zambia’s coach Bruce Mwape has said that the Copper Queens will aim to compete again at the World Cup.
“I think after today’s game everyone is happy in our camp because, like you have said, we have made history,” he told journalists after the game. “It’s our first World Cup appearance, and despite losing the first two games, we managed to at least go back home with a win. There are very few teams that have come to the World Cup for the first time and won with that margin.”
Bruce Mwape explains why he wants to look for new players
The coach also revealed that he will be looking to make changes to his team by searching for new players who can perform on the biggest stage.
“We are very happy as a team…. I hope next time we come here, we will come with a different approach,” he said. “Going into the second tournament, we are looking at the structure of our team, and the mistakes that were made by a few individuals can help us identify or look for other players who can manage the pressure that we went through, especially in the first two games.”
Mwape believes some of his players failed to withstand the pressure from top-ranked teams.
“Some of the players showed that they could not withstand the pressure from teams like Spain and Japan. I am sure by the time we will be coming back to the World Cup, we should come with a polished team and a different approach.”
Despite exiting the tournament following 5-0 defeats to Japan and Spain, Zambia will head home with their heads high as the first Southern African team to win a match at the FIFA Women’s World Cup, beating South Africa to the record.
