NAIROBI, Kenya, Oct 9 – The post-game talk after the friendly match between Kenya’s Harambee Stars and Zambia’s Chipolopolo was what the visitors considered as a late equalizer that was not given by the match officials, despite claims the ball had crossed the line.
After a goalmouth melee, the ball seemed to have crossed the line, but the second assistant referee instead waved for a goal-kick after the final kick off the madness went wide.
And Zambia’s head coach Milutin ‘Micho’ Sredojevic couldn’t hide his frustration after the game, saying with Videos Assistant Referees (VAR), the goal would have been given.
“We scored a genuine second goal but it was not given. All those talking and saying that VAR is not needed in football now have got the answers today because this is comedy. On this level it is not supposed to happen by all means,” Micho, clearly frustrated said after the final whistle.
He added; “In football you win or learn a lesson.We have learnt a lesson. We shall not look at the obvious intentional mistake by the second assistant referee but we look at ourselves critically.”
Zambia players protest to the referees after their late goal that was not given
Stars were leading 2-0 at halftime courtesy of a Tandi Mwape own goal and Cliff Nyakeya strike, but came alive in the second half, taking advantage of Stars’ fatigue.
Substitute Emmanuel Chabula halved the deficit with 10 minutes left and they believed they should have had a second when the ball crossed the line.
Despite the defeat, Micho who has previously coached Rwanda and Uganda in the region was pleased with the performance of his team who had beaten Malawi 1-0 in their first friendly on Tuesday. They will play South Africa in their final friendly on Sunday.
Harambee Stars defenders clear an aerial ball during their friendly match against Zambia at the Nyayo National Stadium on October 9, 2020
“What we have come here for we got. We have tested 17 players and we have seen what they are capable of doing and this was the point. Sometimes you can lose a game but inside yourself you have sweet taste,”
“We have dominated and over-dominated Kenya at their home. We conceded a second goal from a counter attack which is unacceptable.”
“We have scored a goal and we had chances to score more. It was important to come away and play the game well and demonstrate our game model and I believe whatever we have done on the field, we did well dominating in all aspects of the game apart from goals,” the Serbian tactician stated.
