December 26, 2007
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ISAAC CHANSA
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Isaac Chansa is one of a few Zambian players who have been capped at all international level. The gifted midfielder has never won a club honour despite playing for glamorous clubs; Power Dynamos and Orlando Pirates.
Chansa was spotted by Power Dynamos officials in Mansa. At Dinamo, Chansa rose through the ranks and he went on to feature four times and five times for the under-17 and 20 Zambia national soccer team respectively. At both levels the aggressive midfielder scored two goals.
While at Power Dynamos, Former Zambia and Namibia national team coach the late Ben Bamfuchile was the man behind the progress of the man nicknamed as ‘The Zambian Gattuso’.
In the later stages of the Athens 2004 Olympic qualifiers, Chansa forced his way into the Peter Kaumba under-23 dream team that also included Collins Mbesuma, Songwe Chalwe, Kalililo Kakonje, Billy Mwanza, Noel Mwandila, Jacob Mulenga and Chris Katongo.
He made eight appearances and scored twice at under-23 level. The Kitwe born hard man marshaled the midfield with Katongo as they almost led Zambia to Athens 2004 tournament but only to miss out to Michael Essien’s Ghana.
In 2004, the then Chipolopolo Boys technical director Kalusha Bwalya gave debuts to most of the under-23 players from the class of 2004 and Chansa was among those new kids on the block.
He made his international debut against Mali on 20th June 2004 in Bamako and the 20 year old acquainted himself well as he outplayed Real Madrid’s Mali captain Mamadou Diarra and he helped the Chipolopolo Boys to valuable 1-1 draw.
Chansa became a vital and regular member of the national team set up under ‘Great Kalu’ as the 1988 African Footballer of the Year could not find a suitable partner to pair him with. Chansa has so far been partnered with Andrew Sinkala, Perry Mutapa, Misheck Lungu, Lameck Njovu and Ian Bakala.
And more recently young protégés of William Njovu, Rainford Kalaba, Felix Katongo, Francis Kasonde and Stophira Sunzu have also followed suit but who should partner the ‘Zambian Gattuso’ in the long term is the question that lingers in most Chipolopolo fans’ minds.
He featured in all the three group games Zambia played at the 2006 African Cup of Nations in Egypt while in Ghana 2008, he played in two games.
In 2006, when the then national team coach Patrick Phiri took over, Chansa was not part of his plans and after a one year absence from the national set up, Chansa was back in South Africa against Bafana Bafana not Kaizer Chiefs for his 17th international cap in September 2007.
Chansa gave a man of the match performance as he helped the Chipolopolo Boys thrash the Benni McCarthy led Bafana Bafana 3-1 courtesy of a Chris Katongo hatrick.
With his impressive performances for the copper bullets, South African giants Orlando Pirates signed him in 2004 in move which many pundits including him were taken by surprise as they did not rate and fancy him to move abroad. But the then 21 year impressed the hard core ‘Amabhaka bhaka’ fans.
He teamed up with another Zambian, Perry Mutapa at Pirates and later on he was joined by Davies Mwape.
During his time at the Bucs, he played alongside Benedict Vilakazi and Nigeria’s Onyekachi Okwokwo in a trinity midfield.
In one of his football heartbreaks, Chansa and his ‘Amabhaka bhaka’ teammates thought they had banged in the South African premier league after being log leaders for a large part of the 2004/05 season but it was another Zambian’s goals, Collins Mbesuma, that left them heartbroken as their bitter rivals Kaizer chiefs piped them for the title in the final game of the season.
Chansa also helped Pirates reach the semi finals of the CAF Champions League in 2006.
In December 2006, Chansa suffered his lowest point of his football career when he was given a three month suspension by the South African Premier Soccer league (PSL) after the South African media had claimed that he had assaulted the referee.
While serving his suspension, former Bafana Bafana coach Stuart Baxter who was the then coach of the Swedish club, Helsingborg I.F. tried to sign him in the 2007 January transfer window but Pirates asked too much for a player who was going to be a free agent six months later.
Baxter got his man, in June 2007 and Chansa joined Helsingborg on free transfer who also has former Celtic, Barcelona and Manchester united star Henrik Larson on their books.
2008 has been a fine year for him, since his return from the Ghana 2008 African Cup of Nations; the nonsense midfielder is featuring regularly at Helsingborg I.F and is highly rated by the Chipolopolo Boys trainer Herve Renard.
40 Comments on "Isaac Chansa"
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Anonymous on Fri, 28th Dec 2007 8:39 AM
Bravo Isaac!!!!!!! I can’t wait to see him in england’s barclays premiership soon, hopefully in the top four clubs. He’s got good movement in midfield and is able to dispossess the opponents, which is the key thing for a midfielder.
Wesley Mutembo on Fri, 28th Dec 2007 8:53 AM
‘Zacks’ should play in england. He’s a good midfielder. I wonder why Sir Alex Ferguson is taking so much time to sign up this guy. Sir Alex, wake up or else Avram Grant or Arsene Wenger or Rafa Benitez will beat you in the rush. Changamuka!!!
ku-heart on Fri, 28th Dec 2007 8:53 AM
go gattusso go
Jerry Thee (menomeno) on Wed, 2nd Jan 2008 4:13 AM
Chansa is one of the players we are relying upon in Ghana 2008 africa cup. I can aliken him to the late Borniface Simutowe. we wish him well and hope to start watchin’him in tha uefa champions league.