By SANDRA MWILA – VETERAN coach Dean Mwiinde says Captain Christopher Katongo and Isaac Chansa will be the spine of the Chipolopolo at the CAF 2016 African Nations Championship (CHAN) finals slated for Rwanda next month. Mwiinde said in an interview yesterday that Katongo and Chansa’s experience will add value to the CHAN team. He said the onus will be on the duo to prove their worth and justify their call up after being discarded for some time. “For any team to perform well, it should have a spine. When I look at Katongo and Chansa, they are the spine of the CHAN squad. The onus is now on them to prove their worth,” Mwiinde said. Mwiinde said Katongo and Chansa were hard working and energetic players and has no doubt that the two will perform well at the CHAN tournament. He expressed confidence that Katongo would not cause any trouble in the team as coach George ‘Chicken’ Lwandamina has done him a favour to save his career. “I have worked with Katongo at Under 23 level and he has always been a hard worker full of energy and I am sure he won’t cause any trouble because he knows Lwandamina is helping him save his career,” Mwiinde said. He said the Football Association of Zambia (FAZ) should also consider organising high profile friendly games to help the team prepare. The former Zambia U-23 coach said the players come from different teams and will need time to blend. “For the CHAN team to perform well, they will need at least four friendly games with neighbouring countries of the teams we are placed in the same group with. These players also need to blend because they come from different teams, under different coaches that have diverse training philosophies and systems of play,” Mwiinde said. Zambia has been placed in Group D alongside rivals Zimbabwe, Mali and Tunisia.