Nkana Football Club has sent head coach Mwenya Chipepo and his first assistant, Christopher Katongo, on “administrative leave”, the club confirmed on Monday night.
Nkana also announced that Elijah Tana has been appointed interim head coach.
“Head Coach Mwenya Chipepo and First Assistant Coach Christopher Katongo have been placed on administrative leave with full pay and benefits, pending the conclusion of internal processes,” the club said in a statement.
“These measures are procedural in nature and are intended to allow the club to address internal matters without disruption.”
Tana will be assisted by Josephat Nkhoma as first assistant coach and Donashano Malama as second assistant coach, while Michael Poto will retain his role as goalkeeper coach.
On Saturday, after suffering a third consecutive league defeat, Chipepo bemoaned player fatigue, attributing it to the club’s inability to register new signings due to a FIFA transfer ban.
“We are going through a lot of difficulties. We’ve been banned by FIFA; we can’t register players, we can’t reinforce the team. So, what we are doing is using the same players. Our players are tired,” Chipepo said.
When asked whether he intended to step down, he said, “People believe in us as a technical bench, so there is nothing we can do. In difficult times we have to make sure that we work with the team until the end of the season.”
Nkana said it will communicate further updates in due course.
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