Zambia U23 national team coach Fightom Simukonda has named his final 18 man squad that will travel to Botswana to play in the Senegal CAF U23 Championship qualifiers.
Simukonda has named 8 players from the Zambia U20 team which played at the last CAF U20 Championship including U20 skipper Lubambo Musonda who has just returned from injury.
Striker Ronald ‘Sate Sate’ Kampamba who was part of the U23 team during the Olympic qualifiers has not been named in the team after his club declined to release him for this assignment.
U17 skipper Patson Daka who made his senior team debut last weekend in a friendly against Malawi has also made the cut.
Chipolopolo midfielder Bruce Musakanya and vice captain Salulani Phiri miss out due to injury.
Zambia play Botswana on Friday next week.
The full squad:
1. Toaster Nsabata (Zanaco) 2. Kenny Mumba (Red Arrows) 3. Benedict Chepeshi (Red Arrows) 4. Boyd Mkandawire (Napsa Stars) 5. Kayawe Kapota (Nkana) 6. Benson Sakala (Chicago Magic) 7. Alex Mwamba (Power Dynamos) 8. Jack Chirwa (Green Buffaloes) 9. Shadreck Malambo (Red Arrows) 10. Lubambo Musonda (Power Dynamos) 11. Lameck Silwaba (Mufulira Wanderers) 12. Aubrey Chamulwanda (Nchanga Rangers) 13. Moses Phiri (Zanaco) 14. Patson Daka (Nchanga Rangers) 15. Kelvin Mubanaga (Power Dynamos) 16. Patrick Ngoma (Red Arrows) 17. Friday Samu (Green Buffaloes) 18. Solomon Sakala (Kabwe Warriors)
THE Football Association of Zambia (FAZ) has said losses incurred from the last Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifying series made it impossible for Football House to liquidate the more than K1 million debt owed to the Levy Mwanawasa Stadium management in Ndola.
FAZ owes Levy Mwanawasa Stadium K1, 060, 000 which has accrued from 2013 during the Brazil 2014 World Cup and Equatorial Guinea 2015 AFCON qualifiers while an undisclosed amount is owed to Heroes National Stadium management in Lusaka.
FAZ general secretary, George Kasengele charged that the association had pinned hopes on the three 2015 AFCON qualifiers against Mozambique, Niger and Cape Verde but ended up making losses as only few fans turned up for the midweek games played at night.
“We accept that we owe the stadium management some money but we could not pay from gate-takings from the three qualifiers because we made losses and this affected our liquidity,” Kasengele said in an interview in Lusaka yesterday.
He said by virtue of the games being played at night in midweek, the fans mostly from the Copperbelt could not fill-up the stadium and this denied FAZ a chance to maximise on gate-takings.
As a way of promoting the evening matches and attract more fans, Kasengele said FAZ was forced to slash the gate charges but even this initiative could not help matters.
According to Kasengele, part of the debt owed to Levy Mwanawasa was from the 2013 COSAFA Senior Challenge Cup which Zambia hosted.
On the COSAFA Cup which Zambia eventually won, the FAZ chief executive officer said it was a joint venture between Government and the association.
The semi-final matches and the final between the Chipolopolo and Zimbabwe were held at Levy Mwanawasa.
Kasengele said FAZ has since been struggling to mop up resources to clear the staggering bill but promised to service it “as and when we have the money.”
He also stated that hosting of an international match was costing FAZ about K400,000 and that the stadium management were also charging the association some exorbitant fees for games at the Ndola sports facility.
Kasengele appealed to the Levy management team to consider reducing the charges, saying failure to do so could force FAZ resort to using some stadiums for its affiliates.
The commercial rate of staging an international match at Levy Mwanawasa is K268, 000 but the stadium management has been giving FAZ a discounted rate of K185,000 per game.
On the undisclosed Heroes National Stadium debt, Kasengele said the association equally made losses from the games played at the new masterpiece in Lusaka but that FAZ would still pay up once funds were available.
Hence that is why the above pictured lads training at the Hotel lawns,these FAZ clowns are a disgrace to the development of our football.
Why dont you stand and see where you will get money to run football!Each time you charged economical entry fees you are the first to complain and insult FAZ.pREFERING TO WATCH FOOTBALL AT K 20!
Wooh! Lubambo Musonda is back in Zambia? At Power Dynamos?
so all our players will be coming back stage 1
I don’t believe this team list.I need to confirm it.anyway its all system go as all soccer fans based in Gaborone are more than ready to travel to Lobatse town bordering South Africa to give the boys the support they need.That place can be cold at this time of the season.
* Simukonda has called 8 players frm the U29 who featured at the last U20 Caf championship*… Lol bakalamba kanshi
Whats wrong with the mentality of zambian coaches ? These coaches they do not use brains . How can u pick defenders who concede 5 goals at under 20 level to play for under 23. This is a mediocre coach. This is a result of lack of proper funding in Zambian football .
This lacks academic intellectual which leads him to poor decision making . You should not work with emotions . Forgive and forget . Just swallow your pride and recall some of the players you dropped . Faz should not leave there mindless make such silly decisions. If he lose or draw that match should be fired. Arrogant and pompous for nothining . Good coach is judged by good team selection and result not emotional decision .
And Lubamabo has not been playing for his club after that injury.He is not match fit.Zambian coaches for you!
final score konkola 0 power 1
Herve Renard is new Lile coach in the French top flight.
but this folks are used to training on hotel lawns,so why were they complaining when they came to ghana?
Too bad Ivory Coast has been damped,just what happens with that little boy,PB, that keeps on following him am very sure this time around he is not the assistant beacause in Europe it does not work like here in Africa.