ZANACO Rue Missed Chances After Absa Cup Exit

ZANACO Football Club head coach Numba Mumamba has attributed its elimination from the Absa Cup to poor finishing after suffering a narrow 1-0 defeat to Chirundu United in the quarterfinals.

The result sees the Bankers bow out of the competition despite dominating large spells of the match and creating numerous scoring opportunities.

Speaking in a post-match interview, Mumamba expressed frustration at the team’s inability to convert chances, describing the loss as painful.

“I think we’ve lost this game because we could not convert the chances that we created. If you look at the chances that we created in this game, they were just too much for us to come out without even a goal,” he said.

“Chirundu had only one, it was a half chance and they buried it. They defended well as a team and prevented us from penetrating. Every time we penetrated from the flanks, we created scoring opportunities but our finishing has let us down.”

The coach added that the team’s attacking play was effective, but a lack of clinical finishing ultimately cost them progression.

“I think we did very well in terms of creating chances. All we needed is to be clinical,” he said.

He also dismissed suggestions that the absence of striker Eliya Mandanji contributed significantly to the defeat, noting that the focus should remain on improving execution in front of goal.

“It’s very painful. We have lost to a team that is not better than Kafue Celtic. The team that we played in the pre-quarter finals was an excellent team. Unlike the team that we have lost, this is what pains us most because we needed to do the right thing on the pitch,” he said.

Looking ahead, Mumamba acknowledged that the club is still in a rebuilding phase and not yet ready for continental football.

“I think for us, we are still not ready to play in the CAF competition at the moment. We are still trying to rebuild the team. For now, our objective is to finish in the top four,” he added.

ZANACO will now shift focus back to the league as they aim to salvage their season with a strong finish.