Coach Herve Renard says Zambia's 2012 Orange Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) semi-final opponents Ghana are beatable but the Chipolopolo will need to be mentally strong in Wednesday's match.

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Renard, a former Ghana assistant coach, said while Ghana were beatable, their players were strong competitors, the quality which sometimes lacked among some Zambian players.

Black Stars best
He said the Black Stars were mentally strong but that the Chipolopolo needed to be stronger when the two clash in the 2012 AFCON first semi-final on Wednesday here.

Renard reiterated that the Black Stars were at the moment the best team and most consistent in Africa and that he knew about 80 percent of the Ghanaian players.

"Ghana for me is the best team in Africa. They are the most consistent. They qualified to the World Cup in 2006 and 2010 and were close to reaching the semi-finals of 2010 World Cup," he said.

Need for strength
In trying to respond to some queries in the most honest way, Renard said Zambian players sometimes lacked concentration but the current crop had improved in the area.

But with what he termed fantastic spirit in the squad, Renard said Zambia could achieve something out of the 2012 AFCON finals, emphasising on the need for self-belief in the squad.

"Ghana players are fearless, we have to be very strong in our mind. With the fantastic spirit in the team, we can achieve something. Self-belief is important in the game, all the time. Our only target now is to reach the final and I am sure we will," Renard said at the team's Hotel Elik Melen.

Career-making match
He rates tomorrow's semi-final match as the most important in his career with an eye on Sunday's final in Libreville, Gabon.

The Frenchman called on his charges to sacrifice for Zambia and that the Chipolopolo were not far from winning their first-ever AFCON trophy.

Renard said after qualifying for the semi-finals, there was no pressure on the Chipolopolo and that anything which comes their way would be a bonus.

‘Mouth-watering clash’
He said there was no room for complacency at the AFCON finals and that teams get punished for any mistake made on the pitch.

It was Renard's hope that more Zambian fans would be available here for this mouth-watering clash.
Ghana squeezed through to AFCON semi-finals with a 2-1 win over Tunisia on Sunday, while Zambia knocked out Sudan, winning 3-0 in the first quarter-final of the competition of the 28th AFCON edition.

The winner of this fixture will meet the victor between Ivory Coast and Mali in Sunday's final in Libreville.