DR Congo head coach Otis Ngoma blamed poor preparation, poor match fitness for his side’s 1-0 loss in their Group A opener of the TotalEnergies African Nations Championship (CHAN) PAMOJA 2024 against Kenya.
As two-time winners , the Leopards of DR Congo didn’t manage to make their presence felt on the field of play as they failed to score despite possession of the ball as well as hard work.
Ngoma explained that his side wasn’t match fit due to a shortened domestic league season and a lack of time for preparation.
“Our players never had games that were competitive. Today we lost a lot of balls, we didn’t score on some chances—maybe from tiredness, loss of concentration, or little things,” he said after the game.
They had only two and a half weeks to prepare, which, according to Ngoma, wasn’t long enough to create team unity and cohesion. “Our pre-tournament camp wasn’t ideal. The early end to our league meant that the players didn’t have enough games, and that hurt us,” he said.
The loss puts more strain on Ngoma, whose team has still never triumphed in a game at the final stage of CHAN as head coach.
Despite the defeat, Ngoma was optimistic, “We’ll improve in the course of the tournament. We need six points to qualify, and there are three games ahead.” It’s do or die, however, for their game on August 7th, 2025, against Zambia. “If we drop another game, we may leave early. We must win and regain our form,” said Ngoma.
The loss has put DR Congo on alert, as they entered the competition expecting a lot from them. The team now looks to improve tactically, score goals better, as well as organize at the back, if they are to rebound.
Their next opponents, Zambia, will prove a stiff test, so DR Congo has nowhere to turn, but win. Only a win, according to Ngoma and his team, will retain the hope of staying alive.
