• ZAMBIA’S teenage midfielder, Lubambo Musonda (left) in a tussle with Thabo Matlaba of South Africa during last Sunday’s Africa Cup of Nations warm-up match at Orlando Stadium in Johannesburg. South Africa won 1-0.

By SHAMAOMA MUSONDA –
COACH Honour Janza believes the Chipolopolo will rise again on the global chart after the 2015 Orange Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) which starts in Equatorial Guinea next weekend.
Giving a reassuring message to the Zambian soccer fans after the Chipolopolo dropped four places on the latest FIFA Coca-Cola World Rankings to 50, Janza said there was no need to worry or panic.
He said the drop on the ranking though undesirable, was expected after his charges lost the only match they played over the month to South Africa 1-0 at Orlando Stadium in Johannesburg last Sunday.
“There is no cause for panic here. We will rise up the ladder again soon. What is needed is for us to remain focused on the task ahead and that will see us go up again.
“The drop I am sure is because of the game we lost to South Africa in a friendly match but what we were looking for in that match is team coordination and creating of chances which we did very well, we are on course,” he said
Zambia, after rising 16 places on the FIFA Rankings which was mainly buoyed by the Chipolopolo winning the last three games of the AFCON qualifiers without conceding a goal, fell four places after the loss to South Africa.
Apart from giving away four places in the world, Zambia dropped one place in Africa to 11th and fell out of the prestigious Top 10 bracket.
South Africa, Zambia’s conquerors, last Sunday stayed in 12th position in Africa after the rankings were released on Thursday.
Janza also said the fans should retain their belief in the Rainford Kalaba-captained Chipolopolo stars as the FIFA rankings had no bearing on any team’s performance at the AFCON.
He reiterated his statement last month which poked at the FIFA rankings when he described the monthly ratings as nothing more than a corporate image stunt.
After seeing his side play well and create chances against Bafana Bafana where they failed to score, Janza yesterday glowed in seeing his players perform well, craft opportunities and hit the target four times.
In a practice match against South Africa’s First Division side, Jomo Cosmos, the Chipolopolo battered the Christopher Katongo’s former club 4-0.
Evans Kangwa opened the scoring for the Chipolopolo with Southampton’s Emmanuel Mayuka doubling the lead before midfielders Mukuka Mulenga and vice-captain Nathan Sinkala joined in on the act.
The Chipolopolo are expected home this weekend to bid farewell to Zambians before heading to Equatorial Guinea next week.