Copper Queens coach Bruce Mwape has challenged the new players that have been summoned for the first time for national duty to prove they deserve a World Cup call-up as the team prepares to meet the Netherlands in an international friendly game on the 6th of October 2022.
The new players summoned include, Eunice Sakala from Nkwazi Queens, Mwila Chishala Mufute and Bertha Imponene both from Police Doves, Vast Phiri of Zesco Ndola Girls, Elite ladies’ Pauline Zulu as well as Esnard Shuko and Mary Mambwe both from Red Arrows football club.
However, Mwape says the new players have not earned an automatic entry into the squad but will have to prove they are good enough in order to be considered as the technical bench is trying to create competition amongst the players ahead of the World Cup.
“We are just trying to create competition, its not that automatically they will actually be selected, it is just a matter of giving us competition, if they will prove to be good enough then they will also be considered.
“We are happy, so far preparations are going on well and all the players called are in camp except the foreign-based players who will join the camp at a later stage,” said Mwape.
Mwape has also stated that playing the Netherlands in an international friendly game is important
because the Orange Lionesses have a lot of experience having been to the World Cup several
times and that his team can learn a lot from them.
“It is actually a big game and these are some of the games we are interested in, because they have got a lot of experience they have been to the world cup several times so when you meet teams like Netherlands its a good thing, you will learn one or two things from them.
“We have played them before we know their strength and we now know their weakness, it’s a friendly game yes, I know it will be a difficult match but this is also where we want to gauge our players,” he said.
Mwape is also happy with the performance of some of the foreign-based players who are playing well
and having game time at their respective clubs, a thing he describes as one way of encouraging and motivating the junior players.
Zambia will be among the four confirmed countries from Africa that will repressent the continent at the 2023 FIFA Women’s Wolrd Cup set to kick off on the 30th July 2022 in Austrialia and New zealand.
It will be the first time the Copper Queens will be participating at the biggest global women’s football showpiece.
