DR Congo's disappointing return to the Women's AFCON
DR Congo endured a tough comeback at the Women's AFCON. The Leopards lost all of their group-stage matches.
Sport News Africa · Author profile ·
Listen to this story
Audio version in preparation · read aloud by your browser meanwhile
It was a disappointing return for DR Congo at the Women's AFCON. In Morocco, the Leopards Dames were back in the competition after more than a decade away, but they could do little against the opposition.
Pointless
Drawn in Group A with Morocco, the hosts and reigning African runners-up, Zambia, third at the last edition, and Senegal, quarter-finalists at the last edition, DR Congo were powerless. The Congolese finished bottom of their group with zero points after losing all their matches. They were thrashed by Senegal (0-4) from the outset, before losing their second match against Morocco (2-4) and their third against Zambia (0-1).
Read also: Women's AFCON 2024: group-stage hits and misses
According to head coach Hervé Happy, the Congolese improved as the matches went on and there is hope for the future despite the raw result. "Unlike in the games against Senegal and Morocco, we didn't just defend against Zambia, we also played some football and I am proud of my players. The team improved considerably as the matches went on and I can assure you that in the next competitions we will have to be reckoned with", he said.
The result of instability on the bench
These poor results from the Leopards Dames are anything but a surprise. The Congolese national team has had real instability on the bench since qualifying in December 2023.
Head coach Hervé Happy, who led the team during this Women's AFCON, only discovered the squad a month ago. Papy Kimoto, who had succeeded in qualifying the team for the AFCON, had to leave for lack of a contract. He was temporarily replaced by FCF Mazembe coach Lamia Boumedhi, who took charge of a few matches before Hervé Happy arrived.
Given this situation, several sports analysts are not surprised by the Congolese side's rout. "This debacle can be put down to a lack of organisation by the former CONOR of the FECOFA, with this instability seen on the bench of the women's national team. The first warning sign was the team's catastrophic record in friendlies, with 9 friendlies lost out of 9; nothing surprising ", said sports analyst Patient Tshiaba.
After this failure, DR Congo must now focus on the qualifiers for the next Women's AFCON, to try to return to Morocco next year.