Sikazwe will tomorrow be the center referee for the Week 18 matchup between Napsa Stars FC and defending champions Red Arrows FC at the Heroes National Stadium in Lusaka.
Napsa, who are 11th in the league standings with 21 points in 17 matches, will host the fourth-placed Airmen, who have 27 points after the first half of the season.
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Speaking ahead of the match, coaches from both teams declared their teams ready for the match and stated that the league title is up for grabs and they will do everything to win tomorrow.
Red Arrows FC goalkeeper coach Kalililo Kakonje, who was standing in for head coach Chisi Mbewe, commented on retired referee Sikazwe officiating their match by saying it is an honour for the most successful Zambian official to blow his final whistle in a match involving his team and has no doubt he will have a good game.
“He is a very professional referee, and for me, having him officiate our match as his farewell match is an honour, so we will support him even as he retires, and we wish him well in his future endeavors,” said Kakonje.
Napsa Stars’ coach Perry Mutapa shared the same thoughts and believes tomorrow’s match will be a perfect farewell for Sikazwe because it will most likely have all the ingredients of an explosive match as both teams are eager to win after the season break.
“There was not going to be a perfect match other than our game against Red Arrows because both teams, towards the end of the first half of the season, didn’t do well, so I believe this is a game that will have a lot of fireworks as both teams are eager to win this match,” he said.
“It will be an honour even to us to have our game officiated by a referee who was just coming from the World Cup and a legend.”
Sikazwe announced his retirement from refereeing at the age of 43 on December 23, 2022, at the Football House in Lusaka where stated that he decided to retire in order to provide room for younger referees to take over the reins from him because he is not getting any younger.
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He was one of the African referees at the 2022 Qatar FIFA World Cup where he was in charge of the match between Canada and Belgium, and he is the only Zambian to have officiated at the tournament twice—in 2018 and in 2022.
Sikazwe is the only Zambian to take charge of an Africa Cup of Nations final match. He achieved the feat in 2017 when he officiated Cameroon’s 2-1 win over Egypt.
