As if to confirm the adage "to dominate is not to win," the Congolese played one of their best matches against the Zambians in terms of dominating the opponent and, paradoxically, it was one of their games with a lot of missed opportunities.

"My players pushed themselves to the limit to give their best. The essentials have been done, but luck was not on our side to win the match tonight," declared Sebastien Desabre, the coach of the Democratic Republic of Congo. The French technician also discussed the next match against Morocco, the most formidable opponent in the group. "It's an important and crucial match for us. We are going to fight and set up new strategies to stifle the Moroccan team," he promised.

Among the players, feelings vary between frustration and hope. The Leopards' captain, Chancel Mbemba, who played his first game of his fifth Africa Cup of Nations on Wednesday night, did not hide his frustration: "It's unfortunate because we had a lot of opportunities, but there was a problem with finishing and concentration. It's our first game, we keep our heads held high. We will watch the videos to improve for the next match."

Yoanne Wissa, who scored the goal for the Congolese and was named man of the match in his first final phase of the Africa Cup of Nations, expressed the same sentiment.

"It's frustrating not to win a match like that, especially since we were really not put in danger. We didn't lose, we gained a point and there are two matches left. We know that if we win one match, we will qualify. So, we are focused on that," he indicated.

With 25 shots, including 6 on target, compared to just 1 on target for the Zambians, the Congolese will need to quickly digest their lack of realism in order to be ready for the next match against Morocco, which is supposed to be the duel of Group F. It will be played on Sunday, January 21 at 3 p.m. Kinshasa time (2 p.m. GMT).

Joseph Bahati