By LIFESTYLE REPORTER
The future of football looks promising as a new generation of talented young players emerges to dominate the sport for years to come. And continuing on the incredible legacy that was fully embraced by football legends like, Kalusha Bwalya, Godfrey Chitalu aka Ucar, Christopher Katongo, and Rainford Kalaba, just to mention but a few, is the talented, City of Lusaka, player, Victor Nyirenda Jr, who has shown immense potential of possessing the required skills and abilities to reach the pinnacle of this beautiful game.
Born in Lusaka, on 27th January, 1999, Victor, from an early age showed such impressive technical ability and vision as he has rapidly become one of the best prospects to come through, Kaunda Square Stage 1, progressing through teams like Chiparamba Soccer Academy, Lutanda Soccer Academy, Lusaka Youth Soccer Academy, Young Zanaco (2013-2014), National Assembly (2015), Red Arrows (2016-2017), Real Nakonde (2017), Napsa Stars (2018), IF Mondol in Sweden (2019), ZESCO Malaiti (2020-2013) and now, City Of Lusaka, where he has flourished showing maturity beyond his years becoming a key part of the team. He is capable of striking the ball from distance, controlling the pace of the game and receiving the ball in tight spaces.
Asked how he got introduced to the sport and what motivated him to pursue a career in football, he responded, “Growing up from a very active community sports-wise, I started playing football at a very young age. I remember my dad and uncles used to tag me along to watch football at stadiums. Also in watching Marcelo (Brazilian) and random skillfull Left-backs, the passion to play gradually developed”
When asked what challenges faced and how has family supported him through his football career, he said, “I faced lots of challenges career-wise. I used to leave home for a long time. Also, proving yourself when you have less or no connection was hard. Well, on family supporting me, I come from a Christian family were prayers and obedience have always been our number one priorities. Family has really been supportive. They have always encouraged me to be more prayerful and put everything in God’s Will. Always putting me in the right lane whenever things get beyond my control. Even from their busy schedules they always spare time to come watch all my home games. They have shown me love ever since”
He said what gives him an advantage on the field/pitch was the fact that he was a fast learner who easily adapts to random situations. He said he sacrificed a lot to make it in this competitive field and was quick to acknowledge that losing a game breaks him down. “I learn from every experience. I always pick the positives and reflect on the negatives. I personally give myself a task to collect my mistakes and gradually improve. Football is a very jealous sport. I remember going to play football in Namibia at a very tender age (17 years old) for Rundu Chiefs. It became more worse when I started playing professional football because I had to make lots of adjustments. In all, it has really helped me become a better person, mentally, physically and spiritually. To aspiring young players, dreams without goals are just dreams. So have dreams and have goals. Challenge yourself to work extra hard. A true desire of anything good, is God’s indication that it’s yours already. You only have God and you to make it in life. Never limit your ability”
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