The 2012 African Cup of Nations winners Zambia got off to a rotten start for their Group D account. The Chipolopolo made their first competitive appearance as African champions in Khartoum against Sudan, whom they defeated 3-0 in the quarterfinals of the Cup of Nations. The fog was dense, and it was made even heavier by the use of the floodlights for the night match. The first half failed to see the goal clearly, either, and it ended scoreless.Zambia seemed to be utterly confused coming out of the locker room because their level of play dropped while Sudan's rose. Four minutes into the second half, a left footed strike from Mohamed Tahir ripped the back of the net to give Sudan a 1-0 lead and Tahir a reason to do flips by the corner flag. A corner kick midway through the half lead to a power header by Saif Masawi, and the resulting goal proved to be the final one in a 2-0 Sudan win.
Zambia's coach Herve Renard puts part of the blame on the Zambian football federation authorities for making poor travel arrangements so that the Chipolopo only had one day to train on the pitch for the match, but certainly worse mismanagement has occurred during the history of FIFA World Cup qualifying.
Ghana 3 pts +7
Sudan 3 pts +2
Zambia 0 pts -2
Lesotho 0 pts -7
Goals
Sudan
Mohamed Tahir 49
Saif Masawi 72
Match Reports:
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/xinhua/2012-06-04/content_6089404.html
http://news.sudanvisiondaily.com/details.html?rsnpid=210892
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/18317949
Highlights:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SYBmeGIaEWs
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