Rachel Kundananji rose to the limelight in November 2018 when she scored a second half hat-trick at Nkoloma Stadium to sink the Black Queens of Ghana in an international friendly match.
Since then the lanky forward has proved to be a lethal striker scoring goals for fun both at club and National Team level.
In the 2022/2023 Spanish Liga F season, Kundananji concluded the campaign as the second-highest goal scorer tallying an impressive total of 25 goals in 30 league matches.
The 25 strikes included a brace on the final day of the season that halted FC Barcelona Femenina’s 719-day unbeaten run.
With her goal scoring prowess well established, Kundananji has been showing a new side to her game.
The Madrid CFF forward has been going deep to help out in midfield and create chances for her striking partner, Barbra Banda.
As the Copper Queens camped in Germany, they played three international friendly matches in which they won one , drew one and lost one.
As expected, Kundananji scored a goal in each of the three games but also set up Grace Chanda for her goal against Switzerland and Barbra Banda for her brilliant left footed far post finish in the famous 3-2 win over Germany.
Prior to the Germany camp there was a concern on the ability of Kundananji and Banda to play alongside each other and produce results, but surely after that masterpiece against Germany all the questions were answered.
It is clear that Kundananji’s hard work and versatility against Germany played a key role just as much as Barbra Banda’s goals if not more to get that win for the Bruce Mwape coached outfit.
Should Zambia go on to do well at the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup, Kundananji will have to play a big part and continue to dig deep and sacrifice her personal glory for the team as she has done in the recent past.
The former Indeni Roses player is one to watch at the global showpiece and could deliver match winning performances for the Copper Queens.
Placed in Group C, alongside Spain, Japan, and Costa Rica, Zambia will step onto the global stage on July 22, 2023, against the formidable team from Japan. Four days later, they will face Spain, followed by a clash with Costa Rica on July 31, 2023.
