Kansanshi Dynamos head coach Denis Makinka has called for greater mental toughness from his players after his side suffered a 4-1 defeat to FC MUZA in their Week Two fixture of the 2026 ZPL Transitional League at Nakambala Stadium on Saturday.
The Fearless Mabanga Boys struggled to impose themselves against a determined MUZA side, with Makinka admitting that his team were second best in the majority of their individual battles.
“First of all, congratulations to MUZA. Obviously, they were the better side today. We lost because I thought we didn’t do much. We were second on all the balls. We lost all the duels,” Makinka said.
Kansanshi fell behind in the 28th minute when Tobias Chungu opened the scoring for the hosts. However, the visitors responded three minutes later, with Joseph Ssemujju marking his ZPL debut with a superb finish after being set up by Mathews Tolopa.
MUZA quickly regained control, with Chungu completing his brace in the 36th minute to restore the hosts’ advantage before half-time.
Kansanshi made two changes at the interval, introducing Beby Musangala for Kizito Keziron and Brighton Kabumba for Willy Bokingo in an attempt to turn the game around.
Goalkeeper Gwazani kept the visitors in contention with several important saves, while Ssemujju came close to scoring his second of the afternoon, only for the MUZA goalkeeper to deny him.
However, the hosts proved too strong in the closing stages, with Lewis Kasongo scoring from a direct free kick in the 78th minute before completing his brace four minutes later to seal a convincing victory.
Makinka identifies key areas of concern
Reflecting on the defeat, Makinka pointed to his side’s inability to compete in midfield and win second balls as major factors behind their disappointing performance.
The Kansanshi coach also acknowledged that his players struggled to cope with MUZA’s pace and movement, allowing the hosts to exploit spaces between the lines.
“They were a bit quicker for us. All the time we were second, and when you give players like those spaces, it becomes difficult,” he added.
Despite Ssemujju’s equaliser offering a brief response, Kansanshi were unable to maintain their momentum and conceded again before the break, leaving themselves with an uphill task in the second half.
Focus shifts to Power Dynamos
With the transitional campaign featuring a demanding schedule, Makinka has urged his players to put the defeat behind them and turn their attention to Wednesday’s clash against defending champions Power Dynamos.
The coach believes a stronger mentality and renewed self-belief will be crucial as Kansanshi seek to recover from their opening two rounds of the campaign.
“For us to get back, it’s about mental toughness. We need to believe that we can do it. This game is gone. We approach our next game against Power with the seriousness that we have,” he said.
Kansanshi will now look to regroup ahead of their midweek encounter, knowing they must produce a significantly improved performance to get their transitional league campaign back on track.
