The 20 CAF slots for the Russia 2018 World Cup group stage qualifiers have been filled with only Equatorial Guinea and Liberia missing out from the teams in the Africa top 20 on the FIFA rankings.
The usual suspects came good in the second leg matches despite not doing so well in the opening games with Algeria turning around their 2 – 2 draw in Tanzania with a smashing 7 – 0 win in the return leg.
When the qualification competition for Russia 2018 started, 53 African countries entered the race. 13 of them were eliminated in the first round, and a further 20 found their hopes of making it to the finals ended after the second round. That leaves 20 teams for whom the dream of a place at the finals continues.
The 20 teams will now be placed in five groups with the winner of each group proceeding to the World Cup finals.
The teams will be seeded according to the FIFA rankings and from the current standings, Zambia will can only avoid meeting Egypt, Nigeria, Mali and Uganda.
Kalusha Bwalya FAZ president –
We expect a tough draw after this. All of the teams left are good, which is why they have reached the group stage
CAF Group Stage Teams:
1. Ivory Coast 2. Algeria 3. Ghana 4. Cape Verde 5. Senegal 6. Tunisia 7. Cameroon 8. Congo 9. Guinea 10 Congo Dr 11. Egypt 12. Nigeria 13. Mali 14. Uganda 15. Zambia 16 Gabon 17. South Africa 18. Morocco 19. Burkina Faso 20. Libya
It’s now getting tough. Let’s wait and see.
It takes a rough & tough road to make it to the World cup in the african qualifying series there are number of continents that have a far easier series compared us AFRICANS , Goodluck Zambia & all the best to all african teams.
Something need to be done in the southern African region our representation is very small. like this we can’t compete favourably with the west (10) n the north (5). Southern only 2 teams n west 1. the COSAFA must change the format to just under 17 n 21 as well as introducing secondary school competition. thank.
This is gonna be tough. We need to call all our performing players abroad, play quality friendlies and prepare adequately. We should be prepared for any team. It’s not impossible, Zambia can qualify from any group.
This is zambia’s best chance of going to the world cup because the only 2 teams we can’t beat Nigeria and Egypt are likely to not be in our group. With that said the team that beat Sudan is weak and will be mince meat against the likes of Tunisia, Algeria and Ghana. We need a formidable team. I see a strike force of Mayuka and kalengo being the most lethal in africa. African team will not survive that combination. With fwayo, chisamba, lubambo and kalaba we have enough talent to find and create goals. Let team selection be transparent and we will see the world cup.
For once I agree with you, but I want to tell you that we can beat Nigeria. There is nothing special about that Nigerian team. I have been watching them of late. As for Egypt our players just become jittery and scared. Egypt are also beatable.
I think we can beat Nigeria.The teams i dread the most are Algeria and Egypt.
Gud preparation is the best start,this time we are going to the world cup,
Separating Boys from Men!!! Lets prove ourselves that we are not BOYS but MEN
A team that beats Sudan 3-0, both home (2-0) and away (1-0) cannot be called weak. Sudan are not a walkover weakling, they are good in their own right. So lets just be consistent the team is finally emerging that can compete with everybody.
What I personally like about the current team is that we are now chalking positive results away from home. This is a good parameter to use and work on.
So let the games begin.
we can beat any team,this team like Ghana,Algeria, Nigeria they were being helped by referees for them to to see victory. we need to call all best performing foreign players,not small boys.
Wailing wailer sighted……..
Today it is the referees, tomorrow maybe Caf or Fifa
I am salivating at the prospect of a Mayuka and kalengo combination. Mbesuma is also very lethal I see africa being torn apart if we select the best players. Kalengo is so lethal and Mayuka is gaining game time in France some African teams will not survive the heat.
if a Mayuka and Kalengo combination would reap Africa apart the what should;
1.Gabon say about Aubameyang Palun combo
2.Algeria say about Slimani Brahimi combo
3. Cameroon say about a Mukanjo Abubakr combo
4. Senegal say about Mane Cisse combo
5. Guinea say about a Traore Camara combo
6. CIV say about a Boney Gervinho combo
7. Burkina Faso say about a Patriopa Traore Combo
8. Tunisia say about an Msaki Chikhaoiui combo
9. Uganda say about Umony
10. Nigeria say about Iheanacho Musa combo
The rest of the 9 teams I leave to you to do some research. You only think about yourselves forgetting other countries have deadly combinations. Be building castles in the air. John the whinny wailer
I thnk God Gh has avoided Senegal and Cape Verde. I hope we avoid Mali too because Avram Grant cant seem to get it over those Nomadic West africans. They are too thick. However teams like Nigeria and Uganda are welcome. We have some scores to settle with that Micho guy. For some reason I would like us to avoid Zambia too, they would kill themselves to get a result against us but we are ready to put them in hell so that paradox and tc soccerman can take a 6 month break from Zamfoot
It’s high time we qualified to the very prestigious world cup. It will be extremely difficult though. We need alot of experienced players back in the national team though that will be dependent on match fitness/performance at their respective clubs. Chisamba Lungu, Mayuka, Fwayo Tembo and probably Jacob Mulenga will have to be recalled to the team. Nothing is IMPOSSIBLE!!!
@John, i equally have the same feeling. Winstone Kalengo is of the most deadly strikers that we have ever produced as a country in 50 years. Him and Mayuka will form a very fearsome striking duel that will send fear in most defenders! I simply can’t wait to see them play together!!!
I know spices are good, but when we over-use them, they become bitter!!!!Sir, are you sure what you are saying????Lets face it, kalengo has performed well this season, but best????I ll not go very far, but how does he compare with Chris’s best season, Mbesuma, or even Jacob? Lets encourage him, but lets not overdo it. Kalengo has always been there, he used to misfire at CHAN and COSAFA even at Zesco, thats why fledglings like Sate Sate, Mukuka, even Patson Daka stole the light from him
I wonder where Winstone Kalengo has been all these years. He is so deadly in front of goal!
Winston kalengo is a real assassin and if I was mosie katumbi I would break the bank to sign him. Mazembe would need such a striker. Some European clubs in small leagues should also consider him. Kalengo must be the most lethal striker in africa right now. That goal he scored against Sudan has sent shivers across africa. Nobody wants to play zambia mark my words.
I assure you with Mayuka and kalengo up front African teams will not survive at levy mwanawasa stadium. They will all lose nobody will survive!
Kalengo en mayuka cn do t
hahahahha jhon stop making fun of ur self .hahahahahaha nobody want to play zambia ,as in wat that kalengo guy is just an ordinary player just like the rest of zambian players thy shine for one match against an unworthy oponent and thy think thy hav arrived all ur zambian squard flarter to decieve
lolxxxx This guys are really children. Though the winning stone’s second leg goal was an excellent finish. His first in Karima was gifted. We have powerful players who we hardly talk about like Yaw Yeboah of Lille, Assifuah of Fc Sion, Torric Jebrin of Iamaily, Bernard Mensah of Atletico loaned to Celta Vigo etc. Spare us some eara gee
Ghana 22, Comoros 20. Net result 2 Nil.
Who said Ghana will score 8 or is it Ghana 8 and Comoros 6???
That Comoros team has a future. They are real good. They can get more giys from France as Equatorial Guinea did from Spain.
same said about patson daka so no wounder .the next messi
what didnt zambians say about this ordinary player he just shine in one match against an un worthy oponent and all of a sudden u guys came to a conclusion that he is the next messi and that he will be a deadly striker when partnerd with mayuka and that thy will clobber all african teams ,one zambian even said africa will not be able to stand their wrath.were is he now i guies no were to be found last i checked he was playing for ketwa fc
chu have you forgoten about banahene,and mahatma otu
aw broda dats why I placed etc over there ooh. I was at Novotel and would soon drop at Tema Station in Accra thus why I stopped with etc. Even their dream team which is TP Mazembe have good Ghanaian players snubbed by the national team.
hehehehehe talent every were
WE NEED CHISAMBA, FWAYO, MAYUKA, KOLA & MBOLA TO BE INCLUDED
Hehehehehehehe.,…… Kalengo the most lethal striker in Africa. Mayuka and kalengo combo the best in Africa…….. Lmao Clowns.
Now it is no more Mbesuma/kalengo combo why? Bcos Mayuka scored a goal recently to make it the best striker from Africa. Tomorrow it will be kalengo and another player.
Oh wait where is zambia little messi “Patson Daka”? The same set of *clowns* that hyped the lad are the one hunting for his head. They ‘ve killed the lad’s confidence and morale.
hahaha i laugh saaaaa
Another good thing is that the next WC qualifiers are only taking place in March 2016. By then the 2016 CHAN would have already taken place. The young lads have the CHAN tourney as platform to prove themselves. Mark my word; I see an explosive Chipolopolo!
Don’t get big headed naimwe.. Mayuka Mayuka but the guy missed sitters at the last AFCON and he was fit. The best we can do now is line up as many friendlies as possible and call players we actually intend on using unlike in the past where 3 quarters of the team in friendlies did not make the final team. Let the boys gel as they did in 2012. That is the secret, not names. It would also be nice to see some players like Kola treid so that we have the widest selection possible and put to bed some issues of selection that have choked our game.
In this instance I’m hating the word “usual” simply because it could spread its wings and that would mean that the usual African teams who make it to the world cup will do it again.
There are two things I’m crossing my fingers will happen at the world cup 2018. firstly its that Africa has at the least three teams making their debut at the world cup. Just like Angola and Togo broke the duct we should have three new teams breaking the duct in 2018, Zambia, Cape Verde and Uganda.
Secondly Africa should break the quarter final duct as well. This should be the year we see at the very least an African team in the semi-final of the world cup.
who r the two usual suspects in this case
Uganda is a weak ass team and them beating a poor togo team doesnt make them special!
In the next round robin n your analysis ll be dumped into the dustbin!
The usual west african and north africans have really dissapointed. New teams may bring a new passion and expectation. I agree, though we cant run away from the fact that the usual World Cup specialists will still feature prominently.But my wish aswell would be Zambia, Uganda and Egypt, besides the usual!!!!
i have to congratulate you guys. i really like your passion for football.
Ati ghana will win by cricket score line .2-0 nishi ni cricket scores bwebatamba cricket ma scores yalaba shani ?
But where is Namibia? Someone from that country was saying Namibia is a strong team….Muleikala fye… Cosafa teams!!!!
The turfest for us would be: Algeria/Ivory coast,Cameroun/Congo DR, Zambia & Gabon/Morocco.
If we are to play 5 friendlies,then it should be: 3 west & 2 north african. If 3,it should be: 2 west & I north african.
I like the way john has totally ignored the likes of Minnows and Badosqi. These two have tried to provoke us but their provocation has fallen on deaf ears. Thumbs up john and the rest of Zed bloggers; that’s maturity…..
Maybe u are just new to site so u dont understand what maturity means mister!
I will always call a spade a spade on this blog and not a big spoon!
Hahahaahaa………..there it is
World Cup qualifiers: Nigeria may draw Ghana, Cameroon
by Staff Reporter
Wednesday Nov 18, 2015. 15:34
Five-time World Cup finalists Nigeria could well draw arch-rivals Ghana and Cameroon in the group phase of the qualifying tournament for the 2018 World Cup should the FIFA rankings be mainly used to seed teams.
No date has been fixed yet for the draw for this final round of the World Cup qualifiers, which will be played on league basis, but speculations are rife that it could be before the end of the year.
Currently, Nigeria are 59th ranked team in the world and on this count, they will fall in pot 3 of seeds along with Egypt (57), Mali (63), Uganda (68) and Zambia (71).
Pot 1 will have the continent’s top teams Cote d’Ivoire (22), Algeria (26), Ghana (30), Cape Verde (32) and Senegal (39).
Pot 2 will be made up of Tunisia (41), Cameroon (51), Congo Brazzaville (52), Guinea (53) and DR Congo (55).
The last pot of 20 qualifiers could then be Gabon (73), South Africa (75), Morocco (79), Burkina Faso (93) and Libya (113).
A team from each pot will be picked out to form a qualifying group of five teams with the overall winners advancing to the World Cup in Russia.
Ati Kalengo the most lethal striker in 50 years?What about Godfrey Ucar Chitalu,Kelvin Mutale and Kenneth bubble Malitoli?These guys used to score goals with their eyes closed!
I would like to see Zambia face so called big amseeing Ghana or Algeria also anticipating a fantastic campaign for Zambia that go down into history
my hero is kalengo
zambia won home and away against a team that is stronger. than. Comoros.& Swaziland. these west africans know that we can r a potential threat if paired with them
We need mayuka, kakengo upfront and in mid we need Sinkala, kalaba,chisamba,fwayo and in defence we need sunzu, mfune, mkandawire and choongo kabaso. Sub: chipeshi,lubambo,Mbesuma,KANGWA,munthali. Katema, plus jacob. For the friendly against Egypt and Algeria.
Sorry I meant kalengo and mayuja upfront. I like mayuka to be bulldozing the defenders creating chance for kalengo to score.
Lubambo should be brought in with chisamba as impact players. But we need c katongo also to show leadership and experience in the team, eventually he will be a coach.
The zambia i know is when the game has started.If you think u think zambia is small well and good but no team here that zambia can fail to win.zambia this time is likely to go to the world cup unless if it will be grouped with weak teams.For those whose who think they are big teams in africa and you are counting zambia out you are making a very big mistake and u will be surprised.teams like egypt,nigeria,ghana,ivory coast,Cameroon,mali will need to be adequately prepared to beat zambia weather with or without mbesuma,kalengo and mayuka.ALL the best chipolopolo boyz.Nigeria and ghana will not qualify to world cup unless as gosts.
Let’s not pretend, all the last twenty teams are strong. Therefore, we need to improve and strengthen all the departments in our team. Our defence has been tested when we played Egypt and Congo DR respectively. The midfield is so uncoodinated and disjointed. Kalengo has been a marvel in front of goal, but he is yet to be tested at that level. In my view, the only chance of qualification which we squandered was the last one given the fact that we were grouped with teams like Sudan and Lesotho. Had we beaten Lesotho in Mbabane and Sudan in Ndola, we would have gone to Ghana for formality! That said, the onus is upon the coach and FAZ to assemble a team strong enough to live up to the gigantic challenge ahead
MR COACH SIR COME UP WITH A FORMATION THAT WILL HAVE MBESUMA IN THE BOX , MBESUMA IS A BOX PLAYER SIR
Congrats to Zambia and the rest of the usual suspect to reach this level of the final WC 2018 Group phases. At this level, we need a combination of both experience and those new players who have shown hunger to wear the national colors with pride. Lets appreciate that Kalengo is in top form but we need more players to keep such type of form if we are to compete and overcome the new hurdles.
when will the draws be Conducted?
CAF has usually used the last wc participating countries as the seeded teams. Zambia has to either a strong team from the west or from the north in order to qualify. zambia will not qualify becos it has not performed well historically against formidable teams either from the west or from the north and the team is not strong any more.
well we you use some optimism.we are know our team lacks depth, however the boys have gotten us this far.we just have Support them.
All 20 teams look strong to me. No easy game at this level.
BREAKING NEWS…. ZAMBIA ABOUT TO LOSE POINTS TO SUDAN
Ladies and gentlemen, The Sudanese FA has filed a complaint with CAF and FIFA, and also availed a copy of the communique to FAZ over their dissatisfaction with the Levy Mwanawasa Stadium in Ndola following their 2-0 beating. They state in the faxed statement that the Zambian authorities made them play on a pitch that lacked enough dry patches nor did it have sufficient dust for their players to perform to their fullest potential. They further state that the 2-0 loss must be squashed therefore, a better venue selected and the game replayed within 48 hours! They also indicate that Zambia has cheated on two occasions by playing Chris Katongo while claiming he is Winstone Kalengo, we know its Chris who just under went a plastic surgery. They say there’s no way a new individual would play exactly and just as lethal as the energetic sarp shooting retired skipper! FAZ will sit tomorrow at Moba Hotel in Kitwe to study the communique.
you zambians are so funny. Even the i vorians , ghanaians are not praying to be in the same group with nigeria. Lets call a spade a spade. fifa will never wish these countries to be in the same group. Nigeria, is ready to face any country, and we are praying to have the north africans especially algeria. Zambians should be happy they wont play nigeria
I smell rat. Lets hope what Mr. Mutafu has said about ‘FAZ CORRUPTION ‘will be investigated thoroughly by Zamfoot before its to late .What happened to my beloved jersey? $h*++€§ @.