BANDA: COPPER QUEENS TARGET OLYMPIC QUALIFICATION

Copper Queens captain Barbra Banda says Zambia’s focus is firmly on defeating Uganda and advancing to the next round of the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games qualifiers.

The Copper Queens face Uganda this afternoon at Hamz Stadium in Kampala in the first leg of the second-round qualifier, with Banda insisting that the team is not underestimating its opponents.

Banda said the squad had received a warm welcome from the Federation of Uganda and entered camp in high spirits ahead of the crucial encounter.

“Thank you very much. As the coach has already said, we thank the Federation of Uganda for welcoming us here, and the morale is high in camp. We are looking forward to tomorrow’s game,” Banda said.

She said the Copper Queens have a clear objective of winning the first leg and putting themselves in a strong position to progress.

“As a team, we have one goal, and that is to win, so that we can qualify for the next round, so that we can qualify to go to the Olympics again,” she said.

Banda, however, warned against taking Uganda lightly, saying the growth of women’s football across the continent has made every match increasingly competitive.

“I would honestly say, we are not underestimating Uganda. It’s not that Zambia is ahead of Uganda. Women’s football has developed so well in all the countries,” she said.

“We know it won’t be an easy game, but we are pulling up our stockings because we know what it takes to qualify to the Olympics.”

The captain said the team was taking its Olympic qualification campaign one match at a time, with the immediate focus on Uganda before attention shifts to the return leg in Zambia and subsequent rounds.

“We are taking each game at a step. So, this time around, we are focusing on Uganda, before we go further to the team that we are going to meet next,” Banda said.

“We are looking forward to tomorrow’s game for now, and the return leg in Zambia.”

Zambia have qualified for the Olympics on two previous occasions, and Banda says the team is determined to progress further in its latest campaign.

“When we qualify, we are looking forward to go further to the group stage, as we have qualified two times. The third one, at least we need to proceed to the next round of the Olympics,” she said.

Banda also played down the idea that the Copper Queens depend on individual stars, saying every player has a role to play and must compete for a place in the team.

“Our team has got no special players. We are all equal,” she said.

The captain praised the young players coming through the national team and said their emergence has also challenged the more experienced players to raise their standards.

“Our youngsters are so much talented, I can assure you. And I have to fight for that position because I can’t just come in and say I have it all in the team, because we have competition,” Banda said.

“The young ones that are coming up, new faces, they are so challenging. So, I need to pull up my stockings, and the experience that I have, I have to bring it to the team.”

Banda said the ultimate objective was collective success.

“It has to add value to the team. So, we are all together. We fight together,” she said.