Zambia national team coach Avram Grant has praised his team’s character after beating Sierra Leone 2-0 yesterday to finish top of Group G in the qualifiers for the Morocco 2025 Africa Cup of Nations.
Chipolopolo put up a dominant performance to defeat Sierra Leone in Monrovia, Liberia, despite having already secured qualification last Friday after a hard-fought 1-0 win over African champions Ivory Coast in Ndola.
Goals by Emmanuel Banda in the 54th minute and striker Kennedy Musonda in the 71st minute gave Grant’s charges all three points to finish top of Group G with 13 points ahead of the Ivorians in second place on 12 points.
Speaking to FAZ media after yesterday’s victory, Grant said the Chipolopolo demonstrated great professionalism by delivering a positive result in Monrovia despite having their AFCON ticket already secured.
“The football was good but we also showed that we are professionals because even if we had secured our qualification in the last game, we still played well to ensure that we finish the qualifiers on top of our group and also to improve our game,” Grant said.
The former Chelsea manager further expressed delight at his side’s progression in the last round of qualifiers despite having had to do without a number of key players who were absent due to injuries.
“Despite missing nine key players in the last games, the team continued to play well and has shown great improvement in the last games. The players that came in have been excellent and have shown that they are up for the task whenever called upon,” he said.
Zambia will now shift their attention to the upcoming 2024 Africa Nations Championship (CHAN) qualifiers slated for next month with Chipolopolo facing Mozambique in the third and final round.
