By JOHN SAKALA
Nchanga Rangers has fired its coaches Evans Sakala and his deputy Evans Mwaba for poor performance.
Nchanga Rangers Technical Chairperson Victor Mpundu said the duo was fired for failing to meet the contractual obligation.
Mpundu told The Independent Observer in an interview that at the beginning of the season the duo was given Key Performance Indicators (KPIs).
One of the KPIs was that the duo would be accessed after 10 games and if they manage to put the team within the top six, their jobs would be safe.
But failure to which, its mutual separation.
“After 10 games we are in the relegation zone, meaning we may not play Barclays cup and any continental football. I can gladly say that we have not fired the two coaches Sakala and Mwaba but we have gone on mutual separation after their failure to meet the set KPIs,” he said.
He said Sakala’s deputy Hector Chilombo would take over as coach and would be deputized by former Nchanga Rangers players Sileni Phiri and Evans ‘Nkalamu’ Chewe.
Efforts to get a comment from Sakala proved futile as his phone went unanswered.
But Nchanga Rangers life member Michael Milner said the Chingola premier league side is using the coaches as its relief valve for its inside problems.
“It’s not the problem of coaches but the club executive and low funding. The club executive does not go to watch games here in Chingola and who do they expect to be at the stadium?
“The other problem is the low funding by the sponsor to the club making the player retention very difficult for coaches. As life members namely: Richard Kazala, Blackwell Siwale and Emmanuel Simbeye we had a meeting with the sponsor, Konkola Copper Mines (KCM) where we made our suggestion to revamp Rangers. We were promised that KCM will get back to us but up to now,” he said.
Milner the former Nchanga Rangers Chairperson said another problem is the imposing by KCM to have its employee (miner) Nchanga Rangers Club chairperson.
He said a miner as an employee of the sponsor makes very little decisions to enhance the performance of the club.
“We need a non-miner, a person who is not an employee of KCM to lead Rangers for it to succeed. Nchanga Rangers is a disgrace and I can’t go there to watch a game,” he said.
Nchanga Rangers receives K132, 000 from the sponsor per month to pay players, coaches, full time Rangers supporting staff and all other logistics.
Within the K132, 000, Rangers should also pay all bills especially those related to the pitch and arena maintenance as well as players’ winning bonuses of K1, 200 each.
Last year on June 23, Rangers fired Bruce Mwape for the same reason.
At the end of last season Nchanga Rangers Club Chairperson Yoram Kapayi told this Reporter that the trio of Sakala, Evans Mwaba and Hector Chilombo were fired for making the team go through the stress fighting relegation.
This was after Rangers had lost the closing game to Nakambala Leopards at home.
When the season was opening, the trio was at the top of the bench of Nchanga Rangers.
Nchanga Rangers is laying 16th on the MTN/FAZ Premier Table after playing 11 games and collecting only 11 points.
The team has only won three games, drawn two and lost six games.
