England based Under-17 Women National Team forward Jessica Choolwe Johnson has joined the Copper Princesses camp in Casablanca completing the list of the 21-member squad.
Jessica, who is on the books of Aston Villa U21 side expressed delight at teaming up with the squad during the pre-World Cup in Casablanca where Zambia is set to play China on Friday in a warm up match.
“It is great to be back with the girls, just happy to be part of the team again,” she said. “I think I will be able to contribute well and hopefully be able to score some goals so we can get past the group stage.”
Jessica says the international friendly match against China was a good test for the team before the World Cup kicks off on 17 October.
“I hope to be a good part of the team. I think it (China game) is very important because it sets us up for the group stage to see where we are so hopefully, we can get past the group stage.”
On the group which has Japan, France and Venezuela, she says, “It is a tough group but I think we can get past it.”
She is happy to be back in the team after being away pursuing her academics and occasional club duty, “It is great. Obviously, they (fans) want me back, so I hope that I can show what I can do to help the team. I just wanted to say thank you for supporting us.”
“Hopefully you can keep supporting us throughout the tournament and hopefully we can bring it home.”
Coach Carol Kanyemba and her technical bench has encamped in Casablanca where they will play some friendly games before heading to Rabat for the final tournament.
Zambia will open its FIFA U17 Women World Cup campaign on 18 October against Japan before facing Venezuela three days with the final Group D game against France on 24 October.
The 10th edition of the U17 FIFA Women World Cup will attract participation from 24 teams with Africa represented by five envoys including hosts Morocco. Zambia has qualified to four U17 Women World Cups starting with 2014, 2024, 2025 and 2026.
