CHIPOLOPOLO END GROUP K DROUGHT

Chipolopolo broke their  2019 AFCON  qualifier  drought  on  Wednesday at home  with a  convincing  2-1 home over Guinea  Bissau at National Heroes  Stadium in  Lusaka to  collect  their  first  Group K win.

The victory  saw Zambia join Guinea  Bissau on  4  points  after three games where  Mozambique  are  also on  the same number of points ahead of  Saturday’s  match day three home date against bottom placed Namibia in Maputo.

Stopilla  Sunzu and Justin Shonga  scored  the  critical goals in each half  to exorcise Zambia's 3-2 loss  to Guinea  Bissau in  the 2017  AFCON  qualifiers  that  handed  the latter passage to  the Gabon AFCON finals and Chipolopolo's elimination from that race.

Meanwhile, Chipolopolo dominated the first half in Lusaka firing the first warning shot in the 1st minute when Cletus Chama volley was parried by Jonas Mendes.

The domination paid off   in the 17th minute when 2012 AFCON winning hero Sunzu bundled in the ball off an Augustine Mulenga assist.

But  Guinea  Bissau did give  Zambia  a scare just four minutes earlier when Fredrick Mendy  header on the far  post from  Edienson Gomes's  free kick  flashed inches  wide on  the right angle.

Chipolopolo, though, were in control after the goal and Nathan Sinkala hit the post in the 21st minute.

Then, Mwepu conjured probably the move of the match in the 27th minute that involved at least five touches between himself, Lubambo Musonda and Chama but sadly his final touch was parried by Mendes.

Shonga then put some reasonable distance to the score line when he collected a clever through ball from Chama deep in midfield before he outpaced two Guinean defenders in the 55th minute.

It was Shonga’s second goal of the qualifiers after netting in the 1-1 draw against Namibia on September 8 in Windhoek.

It could have been three-nil but Lubambo elected to hit the side netting in the 71st minute.

But the tide  the  changed  in  the last  fifteen minutes  just after a flurry of three changes  by  Guinea Bissau and put  Chipolopolo on  the backfoot.

It paid off in the 80th minute when   Mendy capitalized on a poor clearance by Chipolopolo goalkeeper Kennedy Mweene to cut the deficit.

Chipolopolo have  an immediate opportunity to compete their revenge over  Guinea on October 14  when  their wrap up their  Group K  doubleheader in Bissau  in a battle  for  the seven points with three games left to play.