FOUR YEARS OF WAITING! COULD THIS BE MUMAMBA’S SECOND ABSA CUP TITLE AND A FIRST WITH ZESCO UNITED?

Quiet, hard to read but also very humble are some of the features that piece together Numba Mumamba.

Mumamba’s attributes could have earned him the captainship of any airline, especially in turbulent times. His calmness in good and hard times can be reassuring for any passenger.

These have been Mumamba’s lifelong attributes in the game both as a player and now as a coach.

During his playing days, it was explosiveness on the pitch that compensated for his personality off the field of play.

When Mumamba parted ways with Zanaco Football Club, many wondered where the former banker’s coach and player would end up.

With ZESCO United missing out on the league title and CAF competitions, an opportunity beckoned for one of the country’s best young coaches.

Mumamba’s first statement to ZESCO United was signal enough that a new era had started at ZESCO United

“We are a big team that should be winning titles. I expect everyone to work extra hard because we have no excuses to give. There will be no sacred cows here,” he warned.

Fast forward to today, ZESCO United have won nine games consecutively in both the league and the league cup.

The team has opened up a seven-point gap at the top of the Zambian league table and look set to reclaim the league title they lost last season.

Tomorrow, ZESCO United will be gunning for their seventh Absa cup title against Lusaka Dynamos, a trophy that Mumamba last won in 2017 with Zanaco.

Mumamba has achieved this feat having courageously given a lot of young promising players a chance to shine at the highest level of the Zambian.

Enock Sakala, Samuel Sikaonga, Chanda Mukuka, Samson Mkandawire, Luwawa Kasoma, are some of the young players who have risen to stardom under Mumamba’s brief time at ZESCO United.

Tomorrow ZESCO United will come face to face with Lusaka Dynamos knowing too well that their manager will be expecting nothing less than victory.

The feel-good factor is back at ZESCO United. However, it is the camaraderie among players that excites the coach.

“There is massive competition here among the players. However, it is the level of unity and understanding that has made us progress to this level.

They have also understood how we want them to play. This is what has made us to do well in both the league and Absa Cup.”

ZESCO United will be aiming to unpack the Wedson Nyirenda tutored Lusaka Dynamos using similar qualities that have made them indispensable in the last nine games.

Control, creativity, focus and precision are some of the features that have transformed ZESCO United players into smooth operators.

The ZESCO United gaffer will be expecting, Winstone Kalengo, Enock Sakala, Chitiya Mususu, Jesse Were, David Molinga and Mark Makwata to be clinical in front of goal. Precision in front of goal will be a powerful weapon Mumamba will be salivating for.

In the middle of the park, John Ching’andu, Tafadzwa Rusike, Bruce Musakanya, Mukuka Chanda, Kelvin Kampamba will be expected to be the brains behind every attack that ZESCO United will mount tomorrow.

Creativity in the middle of the park will be crucial in unlocking the Lusaka Dynamos backline that stood firm against Zanaco.

At the back, Adrian Chama, Simon Silwimba, Solomon Sakala, Clement Mwape, Mwila Phiri and Fackson Kapumbu will be expected to orchestrate play from the back and offer support to the midfielders going forward.

ZESCO United backline will be required to enforce every level of control and authority on tomorrow’s game further insulating the former league champions defense.

The stage is set for one of the biggest and exciting cup finals in the history the Zambian game. It is Numba Mumamba versus Wedson Nyirenda.

Author: Desmond Katongo