Zambia defeat Guinea-Bissau 2-1 in qualifiers
‘Royal’ Africa Cup of Nations victory for Congo
LUSAKA, Oct 11, (AFP): A howler by goalkeeper Kennedy Mweene condemned Zambia to an anxious finish before they beat Guinea-Bissau 2-1 Wednesday in a 2019 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier in Lusaka.
Shock 2012 champions Zambia should have been more than two goals ahead before a capacity 60,000 crowd at the National Heroes Stadium when Mweene blundered nine minutes from time.
The South Africa-based veteran hesitated over a back-pass instead of clearing it and the ball rebounded off Frederic Mendy into the net.
Guinea-Bissau, a bogey team for Zambia in the 2017 qualifiers, almost snatched an undeserved equalizer in stoppage time with a snap shot that was just too high.
The tiny west African nation took four points off Zambia in the last qualifying competition to eliminate the ‘Chipolopolo’ (Copper Bullets) and reach the finals for the first time.
Guinea-Bissau host the return match on Sunday with a chance to avenge this Group K defeat inflicted by goals from Stoppila Sunzu and Justin Shonga.
A corner maneuver led to Sunzu nodding Zambia in front on 17 minutes and a brilliant Clatous Chama pass sent Shonga clear to round goalkeeper Jonas Mendes and score. Lebanon’s Hasan Saad (left), vies for the ball with Kuwait’s Dhari Said (right), during a friendly football match between Kuwait and Lebanon at the Kuwait Sports Club Stadium in Kuwait City on Oct 11. Kuwait won 1-0. (AFP)
The United States scored three goals in a four-minute span late in the first half to pull away from Trinidad and Tobago, which finished 0-3 in the group stage.
It was a result that spoke to the huge gap between the US men’s and women’s national team programs. The American men lost to Trinidad and Tobago, at the time the world’s 99th-ranked team, last October to miss out on qualifying for the World Cup.
The US women are the defending World Cup champions, having beaten Japan in the final in 2015.
“I can’t see anyone beating them in the near future because they are so deep,” Trinidad and Tobago coach Shawn Cooper said.
The US women outshot injury-depleted Trinidad and Tobago 59-0 and had an 18-0 advantage in corner kicks.
They did not allow a shot in the first half of any of their three games in group play.
Meanwhile, Karla Riley and Lineth Cedeno scored and Panama upset Mexico 2-0 on Wednesday in their final group stage game at the CONCACAF women’s World Cup qualifying tournament.
The loss means that Mexico is eliminated from the knockout round and won’t be a part of the field at next year’s World Cup in France. Panama, ranked No. 66th in the world, secured a spot in the semifinals on Sunday in Frisco, Texas.
After a scoreless first half, Riley scored in the 47th minute. Cedeno added her goal in the 85th, giving Panama a shot at going to its first-ever World Cup. Mexico was ranked No. 24 in the world.
The top three finishers in the tournament earn spots in the Women’s World Cup in France next summer. The fourth-place finisher goes to a playoff against Argentina for a berth.