Newly called up Chipolopolo Boys forward Chanka Zimba says he is happy and proud to be back in Zambia honouring his maiden Chipolopolo call up.
Zimba says it’s a dream come to true for him to get a Chipolopolo Boys call up. The lanky forward joined the team on Tuesday in Lusaka on the back of scoring his tenth league goal as Inverness Caledonian Thistle came from a goal down to draw 1-1 with Alloa in a Scottish League One encounter.
“First of all, I’m so happy to be back here. I was really proud when I got the call-up. It’s been a long time coming, but to finally make it and finally be a part of the squad is something I’ve dreamed of and I’m just happy to get going now,” he said.
“Maybe like 10 years ago now. It’s been quite a while, but I used to come every summer when I was in primary school with my family. They have a lot of business here, so I’ve missed it. I’ve missed my family as well, as you can see, but I’m happy to be here and get down to work now,” he added.
The Chipolopolo Boys will face world champions Argentina in an international friendly on March 31, 2026 at the Iconic La Bombonera Stadium.
Zimba says it’s good test facing the World Champions and that the team wants to go out there and put themselves on the platform.
“It felt surreal being told we’re going to play in Argentina, but we’ve got a job to do, we’ve got a game to play. It’s a good test for ourselves and we just want to go out there and put ourselves on the platform,” he said.
On chosing to play for Zambia, Zimba said: “I was born here. My family has a lot of good connections here. I love the country and I like the way we play football, so it’s something I wanted to be a part of. I’m going to bring a different type of play. I like to be attacking and take a lot of shots, so hopefully I can bring some goals. That’s the plan as a striker, so hopefully I can do that out there at the start.”
Zimba has made 13 goal contributions in the Scottish third tier scoring 10 goals and making 3 assists.
