Chipolopolo coach Milutin ‘Micho’ Sredojevic says he is happy that his second half substitutes were able to turnaround the game after South Africa had taken a 1-0 lead in the 65th minute.

And Bafana Bafana coach Molefi Ntseki says his side’s game plan was foiled by the early injury to Lyle Foster who was stretchered off and replaced by Kegan Dolly.

In a post-match interview, Micho said he was happy that the high-pressure friendly against South Africa had helped answer some of the questions he had about his squad.

Micho said the result would give his side positive energy ahead of the crunch double header clashes against Botswana in November in the Cameroon 2021 Africa Cup of Nations Group H qualifiers.

“It was like clash of two boxers without guards attacking each other. We have been one nil down in a situation where we controlled the game and we got that goal,” he said.

“I need to give credit to the players that came from the bench and won the game for us. Great team spirit for us after being punching bag in Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers, missing two Africa Cup of Nations in 2017 and 2019.”

Micho said his task was to make sure that the team is ready in November when they face Botswana and also build a strong squad for the Cameroon 2021 CHAN in January.

“After losing two matches (AFCON qualifiers), we are going back and what better confidence than beating South Africa here with top class individuals, top class team and getting good injection of motivation before the Africa Cup qualifiers against Botswana in November,” he said.

Micho said he was working on the chemistry of the players in his squad.

“The first thing I have to sort out in this team is that they have good human relations so that when they come on the field they look right, left and back that my best friends are around me and to play for the nation and to give their best,” he said.

“This is the first question that has answer to me; people have come from the bench and have played unreservedly.”

And his opposite Ntseki said the injury to Foster in the fourth minute was a setback although his replacement Keegan Dolly capped his performance with a goal.

“If you lose a player in the second minute of the game it messes up everything. It was a very big setback to lose Lyle. That did not give us everything we were looking for. That is what killed the momentum,” he said.

A spirited come from behind performance by Zambia secured the Chipolopolo a 2-1 win with goals from Kelvin Kampamba and Chaniza Zulu.

Zambia has played three international matches during the FIFA window beating Malawi 1-0 before losing 2-1 to Kenya and defeated South Africa by the same margin.