Zambia coach Bakala reveals reason for defeat against Nigeria

Zambia head coach, Ian Bakala says his side were punished for the mistakes they made against Nigeria’s Golden Eaglets.

Bakala’s boys put up a brave fight in the Group B game but went down to a 1-0 defeat.

The Young Chipolopolo missed a number of chances in the game.

Zambia’s head coach Ian Bakala remains optimistic his Young Chipopolo are still in contention despite their loss to Nigeria.

Bakala says he saw a lot of positives from the match despite the defeat.https://t.co/rZgBc1HMpj

— BattaBox (@BattaBoxNIGERIA) May 1, 2023

Emmanuel Nwanza’s shot hit the woodwork three minutes before the break.

Aaron Shimpasa and Linecker Mbesuma also failed to get on the end of Marcel Zimba’s cross late on.

“It is painful to lose a game like this, but it was a tough game. Credit to Nigeria for the win because they used their chance,” Bakala said in his interaction with the media after the game.

“When you are coming to the first game of the tournament, anything is possible,” he added.

Zambia will take on South Africa in the COSAFA derby on Wednesday.