Exclusive: Zambia’s Kennedy Musonda Hailed For Filling Daka’s Boots In AFCON Qualifiers

Zambia national team coach Avram Grant praised Young Africans SC striker Kennedy Musonda for stepping up and helping the Chipolopolo Boys qualify for the 2025 Morocco Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) for the second time in a row under his reign.

The Chipolopolo were dealt a major blow during the recently concluded qualifiers when at least eight of their key players were ruled out due to injuries throughout the qualifying campaign, including Leicester City striker Patson Daka, who suffered an ankle injury in August during his club's pre-season and has been out ever since.

US Lecce winger Lameck Banda was in and out due to injury, missing the last two crucial games against Ivory Coast and Sierra Leone, which Zambia won 1-0 and 0-2 to qualify for the tournament.

Other key players who were ruled out were Midtjylland winger Edward Chilufya, Magdeburg defender and Zambian captain Lubambo Musonda, and BSC Young Boys' Miguel Chaiwa, who tore ligaments in his right ankle during an AFCON qualification match against Chad at the Levy Mwanawasa Stadium last month.

Without his main man, Daka, who was the top scorer in the previous qualifiers with five (5) goals in six (6) games, Grant had little choice but to use the available options, giving Musonda the opportunity to lead Zambia's attack.

The Tanzania-based striker went on to score four goals in six qualifiers, including the winner against Ivory Coast, securing his country's qualification for the 2025 AFCON. He finished among the top scorers in the qualifiers, trailing only Morocco's Brahimi Diaz (7) and Guinea's Serhou Guirassy (6).

“HE IS A GREAT CHARACTER" - GRANT

Grant did not anticipate Musonda's impact in the qualifiers, describing him as a great character who works hard.

“I said to the players, take your chances, and Kennedy [Musonda] did because he didn't play before. He's a great character,” the Israeli gaffer told SportsBoom.com.

Grant continued: “He scored and came on in place of an amazing striker, Daka. He scored three goals in five games. Very decisive goals. And more than this, he works so hard on the pitch. Unbelievable. And I'm so happy for him also and for us because he's doing his job more than expected.”

DREAM COME TRUE

Musonda, who started his first competitive game for the senior Chipolopolo at the age of 29, considers scoring and helping the team qualify for AFCON to be a dream come true.

“For me, Zambia comes first. I am happy to be part of the team and help the team qualify,” Musonda said in a post-match interview. “It’s a dream come true. These are the things you dream about when you are young, and to actually do it is incredible.”

Zambia will compete in AFCON for the 19th time, and after a dismal performance in the 2023 edition, where they were eliminated in the group stage after 1-1 draws against Tanzania and DR Congo and a 1-0 loss to Morocco, they will attempt to advance past the groups.

The AFCON will begin on December 21, 2025, and end on January 18, 2026.