Zambia legend Christopher Katongo has weighed in on why he thinks the Copper Queens suffered a humiliating 5-0 defeat against Spain in the 2023 Fifa Women’s World Cup on Thursday at Eden Park.
Having lost the opener 5-0 against Japan, the Copper Queens needed victory against Spain to revive their hopes of making it past the group stage but it was not the case as La Roja punished them courtesy of goals from Teresa Abelleira, Jennifer Hermoso (2), and substitute Alba Redondo, who scored two.
According to 40-year-old Katongo, who had over 100 caps between 2003 and 2016 for Zambia’s Chipolopolo, the Copper Queens struggled to contain the La Roja because of their poor game plan.
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“The Game Plan?” Katongo posed a question, adding: “There wasn’t a clear game plan that the players needed to follow or there wasn’t one at all. Spain was very calm, very composed.
“They played like it was their usual training day. They started the balls on the ground. For us each time the keeper had the ball, she hit it upfront which was a huge mistake that was repeated time and again. Such games, you play their game, tiki-taka.”
Katongo further said Zambia lacked the system and did a big mistake to depend on striker Barbra Banda, he said: “The System wasn’t clear with the players or maybe it wasn’t there at all. A system really is a critical part of any game when facing tough opponents.”
He continued: “Our striking force was all left for BB11, she started moving up and about and even making tackles, defending and our pass accuracy was poor. The force upfront was not there at all,” adding: “Then that red card we got in the Japan game, and the injuries we obtained today also affected the team’s spirit, meaning our options on the changes got limited on who to come on and be the game changer.”
The Copper Queens will conclude their World Cup campaign on Monday with a match against Costa Rica.