Chiefs get crushed in Zambia

Cape Town - ZESCO United put Kaizer Chiefs firmly in their place, when they issued the South African team with a 3-1 drubbing at the Levy Mwanawasa Stadium on Sunday.

Chiefs now have it all to do in the return fixture of the CAF Confederation Cup Play-Off, scheduled to be contested later this month.

Nothing is impossible in football. However, the Glamour Boys - who weren't so glamorous on Sunday - now have an enormous mountain to climb. The result caps what has been a miserable weekend for South African teams in continental football.

Orlando Pirates failed to collect maximum points against FC Platinum in Zimbabwe on Saturday. Mamelodi Sundowns got downed by Lobi Stars in Nigeria on Friday night.

However, both of those teams were competing in the Group Phase of the CAF Champions League and can still turn things around.

Chiefs are staring a CAF Confederation Cup exit down the barrel now.

The chief destroyer for ZESCO on Sunday was none other than Kenyan forward Jesse Were. Were converted a penalty in the 31st minute and followed that up with a breach of the Chiefs defence ten minutes into the second stanza.

Whatever protestation there might be once this is all said and done, Chiefs will probably acknowledge that they were outwitted, outlasted and thoroughly outplayed by a more competent and better prepared ZESCO outfit.

Lazarous Kambole opened the ZESCO account in the 25th minute and contributed to the Were goal with a delightful cross in the second stanza. Were slotted in from close range.

There is one silver lining here and that is the away goal scored by Billiat, which gives Chiefs some hope ahead of the home clash.