CHIPOLOPOLO coach Avram Grant has said that most pitches in Zambia need to be improved, as poor surfaces affect the flow of the game.
Grant held a briefing today, where he touched on a number of issues, including the upcoming game against Ivory Coast, his selection, and the quality of the Zambian league.
In response to questions from reporters, Grant said that he was overall impressed with the Zambian local league, but that there are still a number of areas where domestic football needs improvement.
The Chipolopolo coach highlighted that clubs need to have a well-stocked staff, such as analysts and other backroom staff.
“We need to know that staff in football today is important,” Grant said. “Without analysts, without a good fitness coach, you cannot improve today. I don’t mean you need 15 analysts like Chelsea, but you need a good one in every club.”
Grant did not mince his words when it came to the kind of pitches that he would like to see in the local league.
“The pitches need to be better if we want players to play more football and less direct ball, like I saw in the league,” Grant said. “To be honest, I don’t like it, because I don’t think that is the nature of Zambians. The nature of Zambians is to play football.”
Meanwhile, Grant said that his side will have to grind out a result against Ivory Coast to qualify for the Africa Cup of Nations.
Zambia have nine points, one behind leaders Ivory Coast. They need a minimum of a point to qualify to the Africa Cup, an event they haven’t been to since 2015.
Comoros are third in the group with three points, two better than bottom-placed Lesotho.
