Chipolopolo Zambia on Friday returns to action to play one of the few opponents they have never lost to.
Mali hosts Chipolopolo in Bamako on September 23 in the first of two friendly games against each other this weekend.
This is the Chipolopolo A team’s first match since beating Comoros 2-1 at home in Lusaka last June in a 2023 AFCON group stage qualifier.
But the buildup to the doubleheader has been a turbulent one after Chipolopolo coach Aljosa Asanovic boycotted his return to Zambia to prepare for the Mali trip.
Asanovic has stayed put at his home base in Croatia citing a dispute with FAZ.
However, FAZ said The Croat has been AWOL for the last month since failing to qualify Zambia for the 2023 CHAN tournament on July 30 when Mozambique beat Chipolopolo B 1-0 in Lusaka to knock them out by the same aggregate score line.
Chipolopolo assistant coach Moses Sichone will be in interim charge of the two friendlies on September 23 and 26.
Meanwhile, Chipolopolo head into Friday with a good record over Mali.
Zambia has two wins and as many draws against Mali.
But Zambia heads into the game with two major doubts.
Leicester City striker Patson Daka and Power Dynamos midfielder Joshua Mutale are feeling under the weather with fevers and are likely to sit out Friday’s game.
This means Asovinic, whatever, he went away with all his 6 white assistants? Because Moses is just with the goalkeeper coach.
Comment wishing all the best
Awe ichi chena chakupapusha! The coach flees with all his assistants! What is happening at that Football House? People should resign. Kamanga just resign. Let Chris Katongo take over
Kamanga must resign or he will be fished out from the nkwazi house.This is the problem with Zambians soccer lovers.Things are in a mess muli ndwi muli tunkwa.Keeping silent is a sign of cowardice behaviour.We have only One Chipolopolo soccer team.This chap Kamanga is a Kembo otherwise his days are numbered.
We have a problem to retain coaches in Zambia. This problem has haunted us for many years, but we have have failed to identify the real issues. Football house is often being blamed, yet it has supervising officers in the NSCZ and the Ministry of Sport. We can’t go on like this. It is embarrassing. Next time, we will fail to recruit a coach because good coaches will avoid coming to Zambia. S bad record indeed!
Zambians are so passive tolerating this incompetent FAZ Executive. Obviously they didn’t pay the coach. These clowns would have been forced to resign in any other country.