With exactly 27 days until the 2024 Olympic Women’s Football Tournament begins, Zambia’s Copper Queens, who, along with Nigeria, will be Africa’s envoys in Paris, have regrouped in Lusaka.
Coach Bruce Mwape announced his 38-member provisional squad for the tournament earlier this month, including NWSL stars Barbra Banda and Racheal Kundananji.
Zambia will compete in the Olympic tournament for the second time after solely representing the continent at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, is placed in Group B with Germany, the United States, and Australia.
On July 25, the Copper Queens will face the United States Women’s National Team, the record world champions.
| Group A | Group B | Group C |
| France | USWNT | Spain |
| Colombia | Germany | Japan |
| Canada | Australia | Brazil, |
| New Zealand | Zambia | Nigeria |
While most pundits and fans have written off Zambia’s chances of progressing from the group stage, Mwape says he is not intimidated to face high-ranked teams at the tournament.
“For us to be in that group it means we are almost at the same level,” Mwape told reporters at the National Heroes Stadium in Lusaka on Thursday.
He added, “Even the players have the experience and don’t even concentrate on what people are saying. All we want is to focus on the games.“
Mwape promises to make improvements
Mwape, however, understands that his team must improve on their previous Olympic performances, which included a 10-3 loss to the Netherlands, a 1-0 loss to Brazil, and a 4-4 draw with China in Tokyo.
“As far as I am concerned, going back to the Olympics, we need to improve on our performance because last time we can say it was the first time but this will be the second time the players have the experience to withstand pressure,” Mwape said.
“One area where we need to work hard and improve is the midfield. In the last two games we played against Ghana and Morocco, that’s the area I identified that we need to improve.”
Mwape will soon announce his 18-member final squad, which includes four reserve players, and he admits that the selection process is extremely competitive.
He will bank on in-form sharpshooter Banda to lead the Copper Queens at the global showpiece after taking the NWSL by storm, scoring ten goals in her first ten games for the Orlando Pride.
“Barbra has been our key player,” Mwape said. “We can not run away from the truth that she is our key player. I am sure even [her teammates] will be so happy to see her when she joins the team together with the [Racheal] Kundananji.”
Banda became the first woman in Olympic history to score two consecutive hat-tricks at the previous edition despite Zambia’s underwhelming performances and will be expected to make more history in Paris.
READ MORE: 10 Records Barbra Banda Broke, Set, and Equaled at 2020 Olympics
