The Lusaka-born player stressed the importance of securing a first-leg win over the 2019 Caf Champions League runners-up
Kaizer Chiefs striker Lazarous Kambole says they are under pressure to win the Caf Champions League title ahead of their clash with Wydad Casablanca on Saturday.
The two teams will battle it out in the semi-final first-leg encounter at the 1988 Africa Cup of Nations final venue, Stade Mohamed V in Casablanca, Morocco.
Kambole believes that they can get a positive result against Wydad, who are perennial Champions League title contenders having won the competition twice.
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“I am confident and I feel great. I am ready to give everything to the team and the badge. I just can’t wait to go there and fight and get a good result,” Kambole told the club’s media department.
“Winning the African Champions League will be a great achievement for me. This is the league of champions – if you want to be counted amongst the best, you must beat the champions.
“Chiefs are a big club and even in the Caf Champions League, we are expected to win the trophy. That is pressure on its own we just have to go all out and win the competition.”
Kambole was part of the Zambian side Zesco United that lost 3-2 on aggregate to eventual winners Mamelodi Sundowns in the 2016 Champions League semi-final tie and the 27-year-old is now seeking redemption with Amakhosi.
“It’s going to be nice to go beyond the semi-finals. This has been the breach I lost in the semi-finals in 2016. So, here is another opportunity to go all the way to the final and win the competition,” he continued.
The Zambia international offered some advice to his Amakhosi teammates by stating that it will be key for them to get a win in North Africa.
“What I have learnt is that doing well away from home is important. Now that we are starting away from home, we need a positive result. A win or a draw with goals will give us an advantage. Doing well in Morocco will mean that we are likely to progress,” he added.
The two teams met in this season’s Champions League group stage with Wydad securing a 4-0 win over Chiefs at home in February this year, but Amakhosi claimed a 1-0 victory at FNB Stadium on April 3.
Kambole said that they have done their homework on their opponents and he is desperate to help his side overcome the 20-time Moroccan Botola League champions.
“Chiefs have both the will to succeed and the know-how on Wydad. We are hungry as a team and have done our homework, but we know it’s not going to be easy,” he explained.
“We are playing against a very difficult side away from home, we know what to expect and we will strategize on how we can gain an advantage.”
Chiefs will play hosts to Wydad at FNB Stadium in the second-leg encounter on June 26.
