Zambia won their fifth COSAFA Cup title on Saturday when they beat Botswana 1-0 in the final played at the Moses Mabhida Stadium.
Tapson Kaseba’s goal in the second half handed the B-team of Chipolopolo their first COSAFA Cup title since 2013. Zambia were deserved winners of this title after eliminating a star studded Zimbabwean team in the semi-finals. The Zimbabweans are also heading to the 2019 African Cup of Nations (AFCON) tournament in Egypt.
What does this mean to the Zambian caretaker coach Aggrey Chiyangi?
Like many teams in this tournament, Botswana had brought a team largely made up of youthful players and managed to go all the way to the final. The Zebras caretaker coach Mogomotsi Mpote says they’ve met their objectives in this tournament.
Winning this regional title has also meant that this a compensation for having failed to qualify to the AFCON for Chipolopolo. Chiyangi says the regional competition has also continued to grow.
Teams like Madagascar and Namibia will be playing in the AFCON in Egypt after having used the COSAFA Cup to build their squads in recent years. Mpote says this competition is critical to the development of football in the region.
Meanwhile, as Bafana Bafana head coach Stuart Baxter announces his final 23-man squad to go to the AFCON at lunchtime on Saturday, it’s expected that he could include three to four youngsters from the COSAFA Cup squad who will travel to the AFCON as part of the experience.
SA U23 head c0ach David Notoane says they will have a conversation with Baxter about these players.
Bafana won the COSAFA Plate on Friday when they beat Malawi 5-4 on penalties after having played a goalless draw. – Report by Velile Mnyandu
