ZESCO United Football Club Team Ya Ziko
For a moment forget the buzz coming from Kitwe about Aba Yellows long awaited title shot or FC MUZA’s surprise flirtations with a top four finish and a possible Absa cup title triumph.
On Sunday, the real show moves to Ndola’s Trade Fair grounds, as George Lwandamina leads ZESCO United into a mouthwatering fixture against his former side Kabwe Warriors which is currently under the tutelage of former TeamYaziko head coach Mumamba Numba.
This will be the first time the two coaches will be coming face-to-face after recently trading seats.
Both men are aiming to recoup the glory days that made both United and Warriors, the giants of the Zambian game. Lwandamina’s short stint at Warriors didn’t yield the fruits he would have wanted while Numba’s two year stay at United landed a ninth league title in his first campaign but failed to sustain the club’s fortunes in his second campaign.
Since taking the reins at United for the third time, Lwandamina has been working tirelessly to rewrite his blue-print which earned him the accolade as the most decorated TeamYaziko coach thus far. Though the script is far from what he wants and expects, the veteran gaffer will be slightly comforted by what he has seen so far, considering where he found the team.
Before Sunday’s meeting, Lwandamina has presided over nine games, winning three, four draws and losing two.
Like Lwandamina, Numba’s Warriors is still work in progress. Warriors have made some minor steps towards lifting themselves out of the relegation zone since securing the services of the former United coach.
The former Zanaco football club tutor has so far overseen nine league games, winning four, recording three draws and two losses.
Sunday’s match will see two sides aim to resurrect from their last league defeats. United lost 1-0 to Kansanshi Dynamos while Warriors lost 0-1 at home to Napsa Stars.
From these nine matches, United sit in tenth position with 34 points while Warriors are just two places above the drop zone with 31 points.
Numba and Lwandamina have inherited different projects at different institutions with different philosophies, ambitions and demands. The challenges and successes they may have both so far encountered on the pitch after swapping places may also be very different. But what makes this meeting so compelling is the similarity in their outputs so far.
The stage is set for what is expected to be an exciting MTN Super League week 27 encounter between United and Warriors.
Author: Desmond Katongo
