CAFCC: Ndlovu blames ZESCO United defeat to Al Masry on poor finishing

ZESCO United head coach Mathews Ndhlovu has admitted that the Zambian outfit were overpowered by Egyptian side Al Masry in the CAF Confederation Cup after failing to use their chances in the matchday two fixture on Friday.

United’s long-standing home dominance over Egyptian opposition came to an end following a 3-2 in their second Confederation Cup group match at Levy Mwanawansa Stadium. Al Masry took an early lead in the third minute after a lapse in defence allowed Mohamed Hashem to open the scoring.

ZESCO United responded immediately, with Ivorian forward Freddy Michael equalising in the fourth minute to restore hope for the home side. Al Masry regained their lead, and the opening 45 minutes ended 2–1 in favour of the Egyptian side.

At the start of the second half, ZESCO United continued to push and were finally rewarded in the 86th minute when Peter Musukuma converted from another Pascal Phiri move, reducing the deficit to 3-2. However, the late goal was not enough to inspire a comeback.

ZESCO United will next face Kaizer Chiefs in matchday three

“We started well, but our colleagues capitalised on our mistakes during transitions. There was some improvement in the second half after we introduced fresh legs, but our finishing was not as sharp as it needed to be,” Ndlovu told reporters after the game.

“If we had used our chances the outcome could have been different, we will have to work on that area before we play our third group match, but kudos to the boys because they did well to push Al Masry for a five-goal thriller.”

The defeat left ZESCO lying last in Group D with no point from two matches. Their matchday one fixture ended in a 1-0 defeat away to Zamalek in Cairo, Egypt. They will next face Kaizer Chiefs.