I AM sure most Zambian fans held their breath when draws for the Equatorial Guinea 2015 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) were made on Wednesday night in Malabo before breathing a sigh of relief afterwards.
This was, in my view, because Zambia was handed a seemingly fair draw which could see the Chipolopolo go all the way to the semi-finals looking at the opponents in Group A and the preparations the team will undergo.
Zambia should have no difficulties, with due respect to other opponents, dispatching and collecting maximum points off the likes of Cape Verde and DR Congo before facing what might be a tough game against Tunisia.
Cape Verde and DR Congo should not be written off as we have seen how they performed in the qualifiers but I am backing Zambia to advance along with Tunisia.
Group A has hosts Equatorial Guinea, Congo Brazzaville, Gabon and Burkina Faso and who knows maybe it can be a repeat of 2012 for the Chipolopolo where after winning the group went on to beat hosts, Equatorial Guinea then facing Ghana in the semi’s before meeting Herve Renard’s Ivory Coast in the final!
South Africa, who had a good run in the competition and eliminated champions Nigeria, face the toughest draw as they will be up against four-time winners Ghana, Senegal and Africa’s first ranked side, Algeria.
There was also a tough West African draw that will see Ivory Coast battle it out against Mali, Cameroun and Guinea. What an exciting AFCON it promises to be next month.
However, as I said, it would be unwise to write off any side but the key would be to ensure the Chipolopolo get adequate preparations ahead of the AFCON finals to be played in our ‘second home’ where it all started in us winning the title in 2012 – Equatorial Guinea.
The team under Honour Janza needs to be given all the support ahead of this continental showpiece.
As former Football Association of Zambia (FAZ) executive member and Parliamentarian, Mwansa Mbulakulima said, Janza has the qualifications and potential to succeed but needs to be assisted by ensuring that he has experienced coaches to help him win the AFCON title.
We have a good crop of coaches who could be engaged to help Janza and the likes of George Lwandamina – who won a double this season winning the league and Barclays Cup titles, Wedson Nyirenda and Tennant Chilumba are among those who can be roped in to help drill the side.
FAZ should not look at differences they may have with certain coaches but should embrace everyone in a bid to come up with a strong coaching bench as we start our preparations.
Selection of players will be key for Janza especially that he used different players during the qualifiers and one cannot blame him as he was looking for that squad to deliver results.
Having taken charge of six competitive games, Janza by name should have a team he feels will win him the cup and he needs to get to work soonest and ensure the Chipolopolo are ready come January 17 when the tournament kicks off.
FAZ president Kalusha Bwalya has promised good preparations for the Chipolopolo that will end with the team giving a good account of itself at the tournament.
The Zambian league was exciting and competitive and players accounted themselves well and hope they will be able to fight for places and give Janza the selection headache as he aims to balance his side with the foreign and experienced players with the locals.
It is also hoped that the former jersey (the green with the red, black, orange stripes) that won us the 2012 AFCON can be brought back to replace the current one which in my view is not all that appealing.
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