Zambia forward Fashion Sakala has revealed the desire from every player in the squad to fight for the badge starting with their Group E opener against Congo Brazzaville at Levy Mwanawasa Stadium in Ndola on Friday.

Sakala, who joined Saudi Arabian side Al Fayha in the last transfer window, said when asked how prepared Chipolopolo are to kick off their campaign: “I think this [qualifying for the World Cup] is a dream that almost every Zambian wants to see and I am very confident that the team is prepared; we are ready to fight for the points We will keep fighting and hopefully, we will qualify for the first time.”

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On coach Avram Grant’s style, Sakala said: “That’s the most important thing; for him, he is always looking for desire; he is always looking for hard work and you can see some of the players are not here because the coach is always talking about passion and desire.”

After Friday’s game, Zambia will travel to Morocco for a clash with Niger three days later for their second Group E match in the qualifiers. Other teams in the group include the 2022 FIFA World Cup semi-finalists Morocco and Tanzania, while Eritrea has withdrawn citing financial difficulties in fulfilling fixtures.