By Angela Bambala Bwalya
NAPSA Stars head coach Tenant Chilumba has challenged his players to turn their fortunes around when they travel to Solwezi to face Kansanshi Dynamos in Saturday’s Week Six MTN Super League Transitional Season Group A encounter.
The Pensioners head into the 15:00 kick-off at Kansanshi Stadium still searching for their first victory of the campaign after recording three draws and one defeat in their opening four matches.
Their latest setback was a 1-0 defeat away to Nchanga Rangers, leaving them eighth in the Group A standings with three points, one behind seventh-placed Kansanshi, who are also looking to bounce back from a 3-0 loss to Zanaco.
Chilumba has acknowledged his side’s difficult start but believes Saturday’s fixture offers an opportunity to arrest their winless run and get their campaign back on track.
“It’s a tough fixture again. But this is a transition season, so we are always ready. Everyone is ready and focused,” Chilumba said.
“We didn’t get a good result last weekend. This is the game we have to change things. I’m sure everyone is worried. We haven’t been winning. We’ve gone four games without a win, but three draws. I think we should move from where we are now.”
The NAPSA coach also revealed changes to his squad, with striker Yusuf Shabani and midfielder Nicholas Chisempele coming into the team as the technical bench looks to strengthen its options.
“Yeah, a few changes. We’ve brought in one striker, Yusuf, and Chisempele in the midfield, but the rest is the same squad,” he said.
Chilumba further disclosed that his technical bench has studied Kansanshi’s recent performances, including their defeat to Zanaco, as part of preparations for the encounter.
“We looked at Kansanshi, the way they’ve played. We’ve watched them playing Zanaco. I think they are very tactical, so we thought we should do work on tactics.”
However, NAPSA will be without Ishmael, who is expected to return in the coming weeks, while holding midfielder William is also unavailable as the club awaits a medical assessment.
“We are still missing Ishmael. I’m sure in the next few weeks he will be back. And also the holding midfielder, William, is also out. So we are just waiting for a report from the medics, but I’m sure the rest are okay.”
The visitors face a Kansanshi side equally motivated to respond after their heavy defeat in Lusaka. Dennis Makinka’s men have collected four points from their opening four matches, with one win, one draw and two defeats.
The head-to-head record offers an intriguing backdrop to the contest, with Kansanshi having won three of their previous eight meetings against NAPSA, who have registered one victory. The other four encounters have ended in draws.
With just one point separating the sides, both will be targeting maximum points, but the pressure will arguably be greater on NAPSA as they seek to end their winless start to the transitional season.
Kick-off is scheduled for 15:00 hours at Kansanshi Stadium in Solwezi.
