Chambeshi ready for either Senegal or Guinea in U-20 Afcon final

Edward Chilufya

U-20 Men’s football coach Beston Chambeshi says his side will be ready for any team that will make it to the finals of the 2017 Total U-20 Africa Cup of Nations.

In an interview with Fazfootball.com Chambeshi said returning to South Korea 29 years after having been part of the of the Chipolopolo squad that made it to the quarter finals of the Olympic Games will be special.

The Zambian team made it to the finals after having ground a 1-0 extra time result over South Africa.

“This is a tournament, you can meet any team. I did not expect that we will meet South Africa (in the semis) but we met them, so we are ready for any team in the final,” he said.

Chambeshi said South Africa had put up a much improved performance in the two sides’ third meeting in four months with Zambia winning on all occasions.

“It was not an easy game. Both teams played very well, but South Africa was on the defensive. South Africa has improved a lot especially in the defence,” he said.

The ex-Chipolopolo star paid tribute to the fans that filled up the 60, 000 capacity stadium saying they had made the team fight hard.

“I am happy with the way the supporters have been coming to watch our games, they have come in numbers,” he said.

“It shows that football is back to the normal level, which is good for the country.”

Chambeshi said that his side needed to concentrate to attain their goal of winning the trophy on home soil.

“We are just one step away, we are in the final, we have to prepare very well so that we finish on a good note,” he said.

Chambeshi said he was happy that the U-20 had made it easy for him to re-live his Olympic outing in 1988 in Seoul where Zambia made it to the quarter finals.

“When it comes to qualifying the team at the World Cup, I look back 29 years ago, I was there as a player playing in the Olympics now I am taking a team to the World Cup,” he said.

Chambeshi joins Patrick Phiri and George Lwandamina as coaches that ever took U-20 teams to the World Cup in 1999 and 2007 respectively.

FAZ