HATS off to Fighton Simukonda for being the first Zambian coach to qualify the Under-23 soccer squad to the Africa Under-23 Championship.
Zambia grabbed one of the remaining six spots yesterday, joining 2015 hosts, Senegal and Algeria who were the first team to qualify.
This achievement was a breath of fresh air onto the local sport after poor showing by various national teams this year.
While this may only be the second edition of the CAF Under-23 competition, Simukonda has at least given the nation fresh hope of returning to the Olympic Games for the first time since 1988.
Kalusha Bwalya inspired a Samuel ‘Zoom’ Ndhlovu-coached team to the quarter-finals of the Seoul 1988 Olympics with the now FAZ president hitting a remarkable hat-trick in Zambia’s 4-0 annihilation of former world champions, Italy.
It was however not a smooth sailing to the Senegal 2015 CAF Under-23 finals as Zambia needed nerve-racking penalties to knock-out a tough Ivory Coast following another 0-0 draw in regulation time.
The two teams had settled for a similar scoreline in Abidjan in the first leg and it was pleasing to see the junior Chipolopolo finally knocking out West African opposition.
Simukonda’s charges had earlier lost at home to Nigeria in the race to the 2015 All-Africa Games.
Patson Daka was the nation’s hero when he scored a sudden-death penalty to send Zambia to the Senegal finals on a 4-3 victory after Yao Serge missed for the young Elephants.
Captain and goalkeeper, Toaster Nsabata also deserved commendation for his heroics which kept the team on track for the the continental championship.
With qualification done, Zambia has little time to celebrate the historic achievement as the Senegal CAF Under-23 Championship is just three months away.
The challenge therefore is for FAZ to quickly map out a strategy for the team and ensure the Zambian team will not just be tourists enjoying the weather on the beaches of the Atlantic Ocean.
With all national teams performing poorly at various African competitions, the onus now lies on Simukonda’s men to give Zambians something to smile about at the end of the year.
This means preparations for the team should begin in earnest and Football House need to organise quality friendly matches to help shape up the team for the challenges ahead.
The CAF Under-23 tournament – which will be held from November 28 to December 12 – serves as the qualifiers for the 2016 Rio Olympics.
Africa’s top three teams at the competiton will progress to the Summer Olympics Games in Brazil next year. Let’s keep interacting on malungaf@gmail.com.