The Copper queens will be back in action next week as they face Malawi in the Africa women’s Cup of Nations qualifiers away in Lilongwe.
The copper queens continued with the preparation after the COSAFA games and did break camp because of time, and partly because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Coach Bruce Mwape also roped in a few new players from the under 20 and Green Buffaloes FC respectively as a way of strengthening the squad ahead of this crucial tie.
In an interview with the ZamFoot Crew Coach, Bruce Mwape applauded the seriousness of the new players.
“From the players that we picked am confident, they will make it to Malawi, we could see and tell that they are serious, and know what they are here for,” he said.
Having had several meetings against Malawi in the recent past Mwape is fully aware of what to expect against the Scorchers.
“I said this when we came back from Tokyo, that all the teams will be on us, they will prepare well and so it’s up to us to continue working hard,” Mwape told the ZamFoot Crew.
“Malawi is also a strong team, we need to do better and go to the next stage, we are ready for them and we will make sure we finish this stage on a good note,” he continued
With just a few days before the encounter, the foreign-based players are expected to start trooping in and join the rest of the team today
However, skipper Barbra Banda might not make it for the game, due to Visa Challenges but Mwape is confident the rest of the queens are up to the task.
“We expect the girls to be in tomorrow although there’s a bit of a challenge, with Barbra having some complications with visa issues, hence she might or might not make it for the game,” Mwape said.
“The squad I have is ready for Malawi, even if Barbara doesn’t make it, we are sure they will deliver.”
The Copper Queens will travel to Lilongwe for the first leg slated for Bingu National Stadium on 20th October 2021 before hosting the Scorchers six days later in the return match set for Lusaka’s Nkoloma Stadium.
The winner between Zambia and Malawi will face either Tanzania or Namibia in the second and final round of the 12th Edition of the AWCON to be staged in Morocco from July 2-23, 2021.
good luck to the Team. Don’t be overconfident and complacent.
Zamfoot its supposed from July 2-23 2022 not 2021