ZESCO United Football Club Team Ya Ziko
ZESCO United have for the last two decades continued to play a significant role in the development of the Zambian game on and off the pitch.
Renowned for their perennial success especially in the domestic game, the club has been a hotbed for players who have gone on to represent the country at international level.
With the international FIFA window in plain sight, Zambia National Team Head Coach Asanovic Aijosa has named a 27-member squad for the September international friendly matches against Mali and Libya.
2017 U-20 Africa Cup winning defender, Shemmy Mayembe will be among the 27 players expected to don the KoPa ahead of the two fixtures.
Like Mayembe, ZESCO United enterprising attacking midfielder, Kelvin Kampamba will also join the Chipolopolo Boys who will face Libya on September 21, in Benghazi before playing Mali four days later.
The team enters camp this weekend before trekking to Benghazi where the three-nation tournament will be hosted.
Meanwhile ZESCO United exciting winger, Songa Chipyoka has been named in Coach Chisi Mbewe’s 43-member provisional squad ahead of the 2022 COSAFA U20 Men’s Championship to be held from October 6-16 in Eswatini.
Chipyoka will be aiming to earn a spot in the final squad that will eventually be selected to travel to Eswatini for the youth tournament.
The Ndola based league giants have further contributed three names to U-23 Head Coach, Oswald Mutapa’s 36-member provisional squad.
ZESCO United goalkeeper, Levison Banda is among the young copper bullets who will be competing for places in the U-23 side ahead of next month’s second round Morocco 2023 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against Sierra Leone.
Others include, ZESCO United diminutive winger, Luwawa Kasoma and defender, John Chishimba.
Enock Sakala jr will be confident to earn his place in the final squad following his recent graduation to the National Team which recently won the Cosafa tournament held in Durban.
According to the Football Association of Zambia, the local lads will enter residential camp next week with the technical bench shopping for an international friendly match to gauge the strength of the squad.
Zambia will be away in Freetown on the weekend of October 21-23 before hosting the junior Leone Stars on October 29 in Lusaka.
Author: Desmond Katongo
