Milutin ‘Micho’ Sredojevic is set for his debut match as Chipolopolo coach this Thursday, March 12 when they host Malawi in a friendly at Nkoloma Stadium in Lusaka.
Micho will field only home-based players in the friendly that he is using to pick his 2020 CHAN team for April’s finals in Cameroon.
And fourteen players from that team will join the eight foreign call-ups for the 2021 AFCON Group H qualifier against Botswana at home on March 26 and away on March 29.
Thursdays friendly will be the two sides first meeting since the 2019 COSAFA Cup quarterfinals in Durban last June.
“We remember at COSAFA we drew 2-2 but beat them on penalties and matches against Malawi have always been football thrillers and we expect a football thriller tomorrow,”Micho said.
“But we have left out some of the players in our team who have played too much football like from Zanaco, who have played in the CAF Confederation Cup, and Zesco who have played CAF Champions League, or players from teams that have played too many competitive games will not play tomorrow.
“In the little time that we have had together in training, we want our match to be a reflection the way we train and the way we want to play for Zambia in the best possible.”
But Zanaco striker Chitiya Mususu plus his team mate and defender Kebson Kamanga including Zesco defender Clement Mwape have made the team.
Micho has some rich depth in midfield to bank on in Nkana’s Kelvin Mubanga and Power Dynamos’s Benson Sakala including Amty Shamende of Green Eagles.
Meanwhile, Malawi coach Meki Mwase’s home-based team will have 15 players who lost to Zambia in that COSAFA last eight match in South Africa.
Please ba FAZ televise the match match on ZNBC twapapata
@Geojo: even when they televise, there will be no power. Such is our country