The Zambian CR7- Misozi: experience, talent, and history all rolled into one
Nicknamed CR7 after the Manchester United, Real Madrid, and Portugal legend, Cristiano Ronaldo, Misozi Rachel Chisha Zulu is a winger with great abilities that includes dribbling, assisting, and goal scoring.
The 28-year-old is heading for her second Women’s Africa Cup of Nations and is one of the most experienced players in Coach Bruce Mwape’s squad.
Misozi who has been around the national team from as far back as 2012 as a teenager was among the best players for the Zambia Women’s national team at the 2014 AWCON.
After having helped Zambia to qualify for the 2018 AWCON even scoring in their 3-3 draw away in Tanzania, Misozi missed the 2018 African Women’s Cup of Nations in Ghana due to injury.
She returned to the team during the 2020 CAF Women’s Olympic Qualifying Tournament and even scored in the second round against Zimbabwe at Nkoloma Stadium.
She however again missed out on the delayed 2020 Tokyo Olympics tournament.
At the Club level, Misozi has for National Assembly, Red Arrows, Indeni, BIIK Kazyugurt, and Hakkarigucu Spor.
Zulu and striker Noria Sosala are the only active players from their National Assembly squad.
After establishing herself with the Parliamentarians she had a short stint loan at Red Arrows in 2013 before joining Indeni Roses in 2014.
For the Roses of Ndola, Chisha managed to score a total of 79 goals and was the club’s best assister until around 2017.
She left Indeni Roses for Kazakhstan side BIIK Kazyugurt in 2019 on loan where she played a year and before rejoining Indeni Roses for one season before she moved to Turkey, where she is currently.
While in Kazakhstan, Zulu became the first Zambian footballer to score in the UEFA Women Champions League in August 2019.
Misozi opened the scores in the 23rd minute for BIIK Kazygurt in their 4-1 win over Finish side Pallokerho-35 Vantaa.
In October 2021, Zulu joined Turkish Women’s Super League side Hakkârigücü Spor Kulübü from Zambian Women’s Super League side Indeni Roses on a one-season-long loan deal with an option of extending the contract.
At her new club, she hit the ground running and managed 13 goals being directly involved in over 40 % of Hakkarigucu Spor’s goals in her first campaign.
Zulu returned to the National team in February to play in the second leg of the second round of the 2022 Women’s AFCON against Namibia away in Windhoek.
She netted a brace on Saturday in the 6-0 thrashing of Moroccan side, Phoenix Marrakech FC, and is expected to be an important player for coach Bruce Mwape.
Misozi Zulu is confident of the Copper Queens’ chances at the 2022 AWCON.
“The team is very good. We have a good team, and yes we know Cameroon and beat them before but we have to work hard to do that again. They come with full force so we have to pull our socks and make sure they know that we have a good team,” Misozi told the ZamFoot Crew earlier this month.
“The fans should continue giving us the support so that we can push extra hard. The support they give us boosts our morale.”
Zulu was the Copper Queens skipper between 2017 and 2019 before heading over to China-based forward Barbra Banda.
The Copper Queens start their campaign against Cameroon at the Mohammed V stadium on July 3 before facing North Africans Tunisia three days later. They will wrap up their Group B engagement with a tie against debutants Togo on 9 July.
The top four finishers in Morocco will qualify directly for the World Cup to be jointly hosted by Australia and New Zealand in 2023, while two additional teams will progress to the intercontinental play-offs.