The Zambia U23 national team has started preparations for the Senegal CAF U23 Championship on a good note with all the players named in provisional team reporting to camp.
U23 coach Fighton Simukonda made a late inclusion to the team when he named Gozon Mutale of Division One side Lumwana Radiants in the team after an impressive Barclays Cup quarter final performance which earned him man of the match.
Nimble footed Kelvin Mubanga who is only returning from injury was part of the training session today.
However, some of the players named in the team have raised eyebrows looking at their performances or lack of it at club level.
Silva Power Wrote on ZamFoot –
Please can someone talk to the coach, I cannot understand what the likes of Noble Ramsey, Friday Samu and Patson Daka are doing in the team at the expense of performers in the names of Conlyde Luchanga and Walter Bwalya.
Also let us not play names here, its not a secret that Bruce Musakanya has not been at his best, I dont remember when Benard Mapili last time played a league game.. or maybe am just being unfair to the guys..
Patson Daka who has hardly seen any game-time at Power Dynamos was an unused substitute for Power in their loss to Green Buffaloes while Rumsey did not even make the bench and has not featured for Power. The U23 assistant coach Tenant Chilumba is the head coach at Power Dynamos.
On the other hand, Friday Samu has made a substitute appearance for Green Buffaloes in the game against Power Dynamos and has weighed-in with three goals this season for his club.
Goalkeepers: Toaster Nsabata (Zanaco), Kenny Mumba (Red Arrows), Lawrence Mulenga (Kabwe Warrior),
Defenders: Kapota Kayawe (Nkana), Boyd Mkandawire (Napsa Stars), Solomon Sakala (Kabwe Warriors), Benard Mapili (Zesco United), Billy Mutale (Power Dynamos), Benedict Chepeshi (Red Arrows), Mweene Mumbi (Green Buffaloes)
Midfielders: Jack Chirwa (Green Buffaloes), Paul Katema (Red Arrows) Benson Sakala (Power Dynamos), Shadreck Malambo (Red Arrows), Salulani Phiri (Zanaco), Bruce Musakanya (Red Arrows), John Chingandu (Zesco United), Julius Situmbeko (Power Dynamos), Larry Bwalya (Power Dynamos), Jacob Ngulube (Mufulira Wanderers), Godfrey Ngwenya (Kabwe Warriors), Kelvin Mubanga (Power Dynamos), Gozon Mutale (Lumwana Radiants)
Strikers: Moses Phiri (Zanaco), Friday Samu (Green Buffaloes), Noble Ramsey (Power Dynamos), Patson Daka (Power Dynamos)
In the photo, Musaknya (orange bib) takes on Shadreck Malambo
coaches hv da right 2 choose players, the feel like can deliver however if the fail the lose their job. Sam players like walter bwalya is he under 23, and this is not the final team.
Let’s wait n see if de team wil giv us a gud result
Good observation.
We are talking of qualifying 4 Rio not all africa games so get players tht will bring results not the tried and borin bench warmers like Patson and co. #justsayin
Am equally wondering what patson & ramsey are doing in the team cause i follow power Dynamos & these guys hardly see any game time at club level especially ramsey and now all of a sudden they are good enough to play at U/23???
1. SOME U23 PLAYERS ARE PART OF THE MAIN TEAM BUT EXCLUDED At U23!
2. THE BENCH WARMERS AT POWER MAKE UP U23 STRIKE FORCE. 3. THE U23 ASS COACH WUDNT DARE RISK HIS JOB BY FEATURING THEM AT. POWER.
4. THE U23 PLAYERS ON THE LEAGUE TOP SCORERS LIST ARE NOT PART OF THE TEAM?! 5. THE CONSISTEBT PERFOMERS SUCH AS SAITH SAKALA! LUCHANGA! WALTER BWALYA ARE SEEN WEEK IN WEEK OUT. 6. SIMUKONDA AND CHILUMBA HAVE EYES TO SEE OF COURSE THAT IS HOW THEY SPOTTED. GOZON MUTALE
6. TO CONSIDER A PLAYER WITH NO GAME TIME AT CLUB LEVEL IS NOTHING SHORT OF STUPIDITY ON THE PART OF COACHES, BUT THEY R NOT!
In conclusion the coaches are puppets on a string. The real technical director/selector is lying om a beach in Cape Town, sunning his backsde. And he is quoted as saying; “Africa has marvelled at how we have managed to improve league football as seen on Supersport, it must be in the way we r running football in Zambia”?!!
What a load of rubbish. Gimme us a break, from the campaigb rhetoric. The league churns out depressing stuff uncomfortable to watch. In any case the scouts would have been all over this place.
Let’s get rid of this muppet show called Kalus FAZ. Our game is in a state of paralysis
Word brother man
Good observation. I think these local coaches are useless to say the least, and we have been very unfair on blaming the Great Kalu on team selection and am very conviced that Kulu has given these guyz the leeway to choose their own players but they have abused it big time. For example, if you look at the national team now, Lwandamina only picks from clubs he has been coaching namely,
ZESCO: (Kalengo, Jackson Mwanza, Jacob Banda, Kondwani Mtonga, Justine Zulu, John Chingandu)
BUFFALOES: Friday Samu, Buchizya Mfune, Jack Chirwa
Arrows: Bruce Musakanya, Shadreck Malambo, Felix Chepeshi, Boyd Mkandawire, Bronson Chama etc
If you look at this list you will see that more than 13 players constituting about 70% of the players are selected from teams were Lwandamina has coached in the last few season. Honestly is this attributable to Kulu or Lwandamina? the answer remains up to you to judge.
Secondly you will realise that Simukonda is currently an Assistant to Lwandamina at national team (main) therefore, he (lwandamina) still has a say on which player to pick at Under 23 and the same trend continues….honestly how do you pick injured and off form players like Musakanya, Kelvin Mubanga, Noble Rumsey etc to a serious tournament at the expense of the darling to watch players like Walter Bwalya, Shadreck ‘Neymar’ Musonda, Lubambo Musonda, Evans Kangwa, Sate Sate, Austin Muwowo, Luchanga, Seith sakala, Martin Phiri etc?
The solution is to find an expartriate coach and an independent assistant not Simukonda or Lwandamina. Lets not be carried away by the away victory to kenya.
I enjoyed reading your article except when I came to the part where you included the name ‘Neymar’ to that of Shadreck Musonda. I have not watched the player, but would like to hear it from you. Why have you given him that name? Is it because of the football skills or the structure? If this boy is being compared to Neymar because of football skills then he must be bad news, maybe even better than Kalu during his time. The question is why is he not in the Senior National Team? Could it be the coaches?
I am curious because we are crying for extraordinary players in our main team, as we do not have any apart from Mbesuma (with his recent form)
Could you please give us some information
Thanks in advance
Thanks in advance
In fact i omitted few more names, For example, if you look at the national team now, Lwandamina only picks from clubs he has been coaching namely,
ZESCO: (Kalengo, Jackson Mwanza, Jacob Banda, Kondwani Mtonga, Justine Zulu, John Chingandu)
BUFFALOES: Friday Samu, Buchizya Mfune, Jack Chirwa, Mweene Mumbi
ARROWS: Kenny Mumba, Paul Katema, Bruce Musakanya, Shadreck Malambo, Felix Chepeshi, Boyd Mkandawire, Bronson Chama etc
HE ALSO COACHED KABWE WARRIORS: Godfrey Ngweya and Lawrenc Mulenga
If you look at this list you will see that more than 19 players constituting about 85% of the players are selected from teams were Lwandamina has coached in the last few seasons assuming that you only pick 22 players for the tournament. If its a single game say CHAN game, one can conclude that more than 100% of the locally based players selected by Lwandamina and his assistant Simukanda come from only clubs they have coached. Honestly is this mediocrity attributable to Kulu or Lwandamina? the answer remains with the statistics i have given.
lets not involve Kulu in such mediocre but blame him for allowing it
We need the darling to watch players like Walter Bwalya, Shadreck ‘Neymar’ Musonda, Lubambo Musonda, Evans Kangwa, Sate Sate, Austin Muwowo, Luchanga, Seith sakala, Martin Phiri etc to make the trip to Senegal.
You have been asked a VERY SIMPLE QUESTION by Justice. You haven’t answered it but you’ve kept on beating about the bush. Please answer the question about your ‘Neymar’ tag on Shadrick Musonda!!!!
This simply a provisional squad am de likes of sate sate, evans kangwa, lubambo musonda will b part of de final squad, bcoz if nt so we will b back to de drawing board lyk owez n we will b tourists as usual n lets nt owez put de blame on kalu owez people learn to appreciate even s bit. Remember this z a provisional squad pros cnt b part of it…..
Am also curious on ‘so-called neymar’ coz hv neva seen a player wit football dribbling skills in da ZPL currently. It seems Zambia has stopped manufacturing some. Apart 4rm Chisamba’s attempted dribbles tht usually go nowhere.
I like dat chisamba’s dribbling skills dat go no were kkkkkkkkk
musonda is good but you have to drop kalaba or chisamba for him to play. kelvin mubanga is good but is coming from injury. when we played ivory cost in nkoloma he was the best Zambian player on the pitch until he got injured. mukuka mulenga was a sorry site. as for players that can drible. watch Julius stumbeko from power. we have so match talent but pathetic team selection