DID ANDREW KAMANGA HIRE GRANT?
Following the revelation by Zambia’s national team coach, Avram Grant, in an interview with Israeli media outlet, ONE, that he was approached twice to take over the Chipolopolo job before his eventual appointment in December 2022. The experienced 67-year-old coach was initially contacted by a Zambia-based countryman and top agent named Nir Karin. Grant turned down the job offer twice because he didn’t feel 100% committed to taking the role.
“A guy named Nir Karin who does great work in Zambia and loves Africa very much. He arrived [in Zambia] 20 years ago, and for 20 years now he goes back and forth, tries very hard to help them, and is a very good player agent.
“He talked to me two years ago and a year ago, I told him that I thought I wouldn’t come [to Zambia] because I didn’t feel 100%. I remember once he (Karin) told me 90% is also good and I told him if I don’t have 100% in my head I don’t want to come.”
However, Grant eventually took up the job after meetings with FAZ President, Andrew Kamanga, during the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar. Grant was impressed with Kamanga’s vision for the team and his commitment to moving the team forward.
“This time he made contact with the president of Zambia [FAZ] and we met twice, once in Qatar and once in the United Arab Emirates, I liked that he wanted to move forward. I liked his vision because he knew that Zambia was one of the lions of Africa. We talked a few more times, and in the end, we closed and I’m very happy,” he said.
Meanwhile, during the hiring process, the committee with the mandate of hiring the national team coach released a list of the top three shortlisted candidates which included Grant, Wedson Nyirenda, and Honor Janza as the top favorites for the job after the association received applications from more than 50 candidates.
Now the question going around is what was the purpose of the committee selection process when the job was already given to someone way before the advert for the job was even made public?
Who was responsible for Grant’s hiring?
These are some of the few questions that football lovers are having that need answers with regard to integrity and transparency in the hiring process of the national team coach.
PICTURE-FAZ MEDIA