Micho happy with adherence

MUKWIMA CHILALA writes  ZAMBIA National Soccer Team coach a Milutin ‘Micho’ Sredojevichas expressed happiness with the adherence levels of his players to the online training programme that his technical bench had been administering. Featuring on ZNBC TV’s Sport On Programme on Thursday, Michosaid players had sacrificed a lot during the COVID-19 pandemic period and was hopeful that their efforts […]

Micho happy with adherence
MUKWIMA CHILALA writes  ZAMBIA National Soccer Team coach a Milutin ‘Micho’ Sredojevichas expressed happiness with the adherence levels of his players to the online training programme that his technical bench had been administering. Featuring on ZNBC TV’s Sport On Programme on Thursday, Michosaid players had sacrificed a lot during the COVID-19 pandemic period and was hopeful that their efforts would be rewarded soon. Micho said that once the authorities give a comeback signal he will pick up from where he left with a camp for local players that he had put on a special program that saw him trim the number from 131 to 28. The 28 players were his pick ahead of the African Nations Championship that was going to be preceded by the Three-Nations Invitational tournament in Uganda. “I need to give credit to our players that they have really taken it (online training) very seriously. The way life is going I regard Zambian players as one of the hardest working on the continent and great believers,” he said. “They have invested so much and I am looking forward to that investment being abided and I am sure it will pay back when they return to the field.” Micho said the lengthened absence from active football had given him an opportunity to include players that had previously been injured prior to the suspension of football activities. “From 28 players we have added in the group 37 more, we have 55 at present, we have among those that at the time of us going at the tournament [CHAN] were injured like Isaac Shamujompa, Sebastian Mwange, Mwila Phiri and Jimmy Ndhlovu and others that have not been in proper shape in that moment,” he said. “So the loop of 55 players are going in the seventh week of the intensive work. I could say that we have reached a certain level based on controlling mechanism and we have seen where they are,” he said. Micho said his technical bench had designed a set of exercises that were upgraded weekly. “Very crucial was setting a Plan B under Covid-19, which was setting up 85 exercises that are done in closed space where players are, exercises that are treating the whole body,” he said. “We have done the consultation even among others, the fitness team of Novak Djokovic (tennis star) in terms of what is the best for us to keep the players going over the bridge of Covid-19 so that once we get over the bridge we have the comparative advantage ahead of other teams.” Micho was unveiled as Chipolopolo coach on 3 February 2020 and immediately got down to work but had to adjust his plans after the outbreak of the Covid-19 that saw the postponement of the CHAN that had been set to start on April 4 in Cameroon and Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers. Zambia is among 16 African countries that qualified for the CHAN and is in Group D alongside Guinea, Namibia and Tanzania. The Sun