Following a 1-0 defeat to Royal Leopard in the 2021/2022 CAF Champions League preliminary round first-leg, Zesco United coach Numba Mumamba has revealed his disappointment at the result stating his side deserved more.
The two in-form sides locked horns at Mabuso Sports Ground in Mbabane on Saturday afternoon, where an own goal by defender Solomon Sakala inspired the hosts to a 1-0 victory.
Speaking on the disappointing loss, Zesco United head coach Mumamba admitted he was deeply disappointed by his team’s performance.
“I am very disappointed with the defeat. This is a game we could have easily won. We created numerous chances, but we couldn’t convert those opportunities into goals. We gave away the lone goal they got due to our poor defending,” Mumamba told the club website.
“We failed to convert our chances. We will go and work on our finishing. This is the first half. The second leg will be in Ndola and am positive we will be very much ready for them. I am personally disappointed that I failed to convert my chances.”
Zesco United their five -game winning run crumble away in Eswatini when they met an inspired Royal Leopard. Both sides started the game on the front foot but squandered a few decent opportunities to open the scoring.
Goalkeeper Ian Otieno, in particular, was in excellent form as he denied the visitors a way back into the game on several occasions.
With Zesco throwing their men forward to restore parity, Leopard caught them on counter and the pressure forced Sakala to score in his own net.
Zesco will host the second leg next Saturday at Levy Mwanawasa Stadium hoping to proceed to the first round and the aggregate winner will play either GD Sagrada Esperanca of Angola or Zimbabwean champions FC Platinum.
