Zambia vs Ethiopia post-match report

Zambia were stunned by 10-man Ethiopia who rallied to hold the defending champions to a 1-1 draw at Mbombela Stadium in Nelspruit on January 21.

5 Kennedy Mweene: His 23rd minute save of Saladin Said's penalty was his best moment in the game. He was caught flat-footed for Adane Girma's equaliser.

5 Davies Nkausu: Worked hard for his money on Monday to help complement a poor Stopilla Sunzu but struggled for pace and winning balls.

5 Hichani Himonde: Was short on pace and felt the pressure and almost added to Zambia’s misery had Said scored in the 73rd minute.

His 29th minute free-kick deflected off the Ethiopia wall and was his only positive contribution in the game.

4 Stopilla Sunzu: He had his poorest game to date. Sluggish and unsure of what to do.

4 Joseph Musonda: Out of position and was at fault for Adane Girma's goal. Replaced by Jacob Mulenga in the 61st minute.

5 Nathan Sinkala: Failed to give his backline enough cover. He had a great chance to put Zambia ahead in the 26th minute but it was frustrating to witness his casual effort.

However, had his 86th minute pass reached Mbesuma, it would have redeemed him had the latter not been a faction late for the ball.

6 Isaac Chansa: For a while he won the combative battle with Saladin Said. His assist for Mbesuma's goal went some way in enhancing his modest display.

Came close to scoring in the 55th minute but effort went wide. Made way for Mukuka Mulenga in the 75th minute.

7 Rainford Kalaba: Kalaba had a frustrating day. Created openings for Katongo and Mbesuma and toiled all night.

6 Lungu Chisamba: Had another consistent game despite his major part in Ethiopia's penalty and was instrumental in goalkeeper Bushura Tasew sending off.

4 Christopher Katongo: He had a glorious chance wasted from a Kalaba assist in the 5th minute.

Ignored Mbesuma for most of the game who had an easy time finding space and instead went in search of personal glory.

7 Collins Mbesuma: Suffered from poor service and when he did get quality balls he showed why is he the renaissance man.

His debut goal will forever be remember as the goal that kept Zambia’s hopes alive in 2013.

5 Jacob Mulenga: Replaced Musonda in the 61st minute. His shooting and aerial threat was poor and failed to use his pace and power to make any impact.

7 Mukuka Mulenga: Came on for Isaac Chansa in the 75th minute. He was a handful for Ethiopia’s defenders. But it was a case of too little too late for a team that still had 11 men on the pitch.

4 Emmanuel Mayuka: Replaced Christopher Katongo in the 83rd minute. Apart from the off side call in the 88th minute after he was put through by Mukuka Mulenga, Mayuka had little impact in the seven minutes he was on the pitch.

Afcon 2013 finals Latest Fixtures & Results

Home	Results	Away	Date	Venue	Matches
Nigeria	1 - 1	Burkina Faso	21 Jan 13	Mbombela S...	Report
Zambia	1 - 1	Ethiopia	21 Jan 13	Mbombela S...	Report
Mali	1 - 0	Niger	20 Jan 13	Nelson Man...	Report
Ghana	2 - 2	DR Congo	20 Jan 13	Nelson Man...	Report
Angola	0 - 0	Morocco	19 Jan 13	Soccer Cit...	Report
South Africa	0 - 0	Cape Verde	19 Jan 13	Soccer Cit...	Report

Home	Fixtures	Away	Date	Venue	Matches
Cote d'Ivoir...	-	Togo	22 Jan 13	Royal Bafo...	Preview
Tunisia	-	Algeria	22 Jan 13	Royal Bafo...	Preview
South Africa	-	Angola	23 Jan 13	Moses Mabh...	-
Morocco	-	Cape Verde	23 Jan 13	Moses Mabh...	-
Ghana	-	Mali	24 Jan 13	Nelson Man...	-
Niger	-	DR Congo	24 Jan 13	Nelson Man...	-
Zambia	-	Nigeria	25 Jan 13	Mbombela S...	-
Burkina Faso	-	Ethiopia	25 Jan 13	Mbombela S...	-
Cote d'Ivoir...	-	Tunisia	26 Jan 13	Royal Bafo...	-
Algeria	-	Togo	26 Jan 13	Royal Bafo...	-

Afcon 2013 finals: Algeria vs Tunisia match preview

Algeria and Tunisia go head-to-head in a fascinating north African battle in Group D at the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations on Tuesday

Algeria and Tunisia go head-to-head in a fascinating north African battle in Group D at the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations on Tuesday evening.

The match at the Royal Bafokeng Stadium in Rustenburg has the potential to be one of the clashes of the opening round of competition and also could have a major say in who qualifies from what is likely to be a hotly contested pool.

With Cote d’Ivoire and Togo the other teams in this foursome, it has been labeled the Group of Death, and both Algeria and Tunisia have spoken of the importance of getting off to a good start. 
“The match against Tunisia will determine our future in this competition,” says coach Vahid Halilhodzic, who ironically was in charge of Cote d'Ivoire when they were ousted by Algeria in the quarterfinals in 2010.

“Anything is possible at the Cup of Nations. Honestly, who bet even one dime that Zambia would win the last competition [in 2012]? I can assure Algerians that we will not be in South Africa as tourists.

“My squad is inexperienced but full of desire to do well. Although I am optimistic, it will not be a major surprise if we are eliminated after the opening round. If we get to the quarter-finals you never know what can happen, but we have to get there first and it starts with a positive result from our outing against Tunisia.”

It is a view backed up by Algeria forward Mohamed Amine Aoudia: “This game is very important to us. It could be the key to our qualification for the quarter-finals.”

The Fennec Foxes have had a decent build-up top the tournament, though they did look below par in their warm-up match with South Africa that finished 0-0. They faded badly in the game and could well be affected by the altitude here again.

Tunisia have come in for some criticism of their form in the lead-up to the tournament, having been thumped 4-2 by Ghana, and also completed disappointing draws against Ethiopia and Gabon.

All of those occurred at the teams camp in UAE and they were one of the last teams to arrive in South Africa for the tournament.

The Tunisians can count on recent experience for some hope though, they were not expected to feature prominently at the 2012 finals in Equatorial Guinea and Gabon, but reached the quarterfinals before losing narrowly to Ghana in extra-time.

Algeria edge the head-to-head between these two sides slightly with 15 wins to 11, but surprisingly perhaps, this is the first time they are meeting in the continental finals.