Mweetwa Slams Lack of Technical Structures in Local Clubs

Former Chipolopolo striker Nchimunya Mweetwa has noted that local football clubs have neglected critical structures that play a role in developing the game.

Speaking in an interview with FullTime, Mweetwa said soccer fans should not have high expectations of local clubs, especially in continental football, because of a lack of structures.

Mweetwa adds that with most teams not having technical directors, it is hard to achieve success because coaches can only do as much compared to technical directors.

He adds that technical directors are crucial as they give identity to the club through defining their style of play, creating player profiles to align with playing philosophies, and undertaking other essential responsibilities.

He states that a weak league translates into below-par performances at the national team level.

“Back in the days, our league was very strong; that’s why it was very easy for the national team to perform at a very good level,” he said.

Mweetwa adds, “Nowadays our league is not in the top 10; that on its own should tell you that we should not expect much from our senior men’s team.”

The former Buildcon Football Club coach has urged clubs to take a leaf from the Football Association of Zambia (FAZ), which has a technical director who has helped to develop youth football, going by the recent dominance at regional level.

Zambia Under-17 boys recently qualified to the U17 FIFA World Cup.

The men’s Under-20 will be aiming to qualify to the Under-20 FIFA World Cup by among the semi-finals at the upcoming Under-20 Africa Cup of Nations in Egypt.

The Under-17 Women’s national team is in Togo, for the second leg, third round U17 FIFA Women’s World Cup qualifier against Benin. Overall winner qualifies to the global showpiece.

Mweetwa states that football has changed over the years and the technical directors’ role has become increasingly important in modern football.

“We need to be honest with ourselves; our league is not strong at the moment. We need to put up proper structures and move with time,” Mweetwa said.

“At the FA level, we have a very vibrant technical director, who is knowledgeable, but at the club local league level, we don’t have technical directors. A technical director is very important even for a club.

“We just have coaches, and we expect them to do everything. Football has evolved; there are new threats that have come in. We just want results, but we don’t want to invest.”