FAZ Super Division giants Nkana have backed under fire coach Aggrey Chiyangi after Saturday’s 4-0 semifinal defeat to Zanaco in the Barclays Cup.
Nkana were eliminated from the Barclays Cup in humiliating fashion after suffering a heavy defeat at the hands of Zanaco at Arthur Davies Stadium in Kitwe.
In a statement released on Wednesday, Nkana President Everisto Kabila dispelled rumours on social media suggesting that the club had fired Chiyangi.
“Coach Chiyangi is still in charge of the team. The head coach is currently with the Zambia national team preparing for a World Cup qualifier game against Cameroon,” Kabila stated.
Nkana are second on the league table with 57 points from 29 matches played.
“My executive committee has no basis or justification to cite the head coach and his technical bench for poor work performance when the team is currently standing on a very respectable position in the 2016 MTN/FAZ Super League compared to the performance of 2015 and 2014 during the same period.
“Therefore, as a committee we wish to state that the current statistics do not warrant the firing of the coach or technical bench. The executive will at the end of the season carry out a postmortem and areas of inefficiency will urgently be fixed,” Kabila stated.
He urged supporters to rally behind the team in a peaceful manner.
“There is no crisis at the club as is being portrayed through supporters social media, we urge our supporters from midlands not to exert unnecessary pressure on the team through negative write ups.
“We wish to call for peace among Nkana supporters during the match and outside. The players and the technical bench need your support to give you results,” Kabila said.
Nkana hired Chiyangi last year in May immediately after firing club legend Beston Chambeshi as head coach.
Meanwhile, Nkana are currently preparing to host Nakambala Leopards in a league match at Nkana Stadium on Saturday.
