Personality OF THE WEEK

Elmo Ukondja Kambindu

Norrie Kaanjuka, Ricardo Mannetti or Bobby Samaria? Bobby Samaria Jürgen Klopp, Pep Guardiola or Jose Mourinho? Jose Mourinho

Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo? Cristiano Ronaldo

BMW, Mercedes Benz or Audi? BMW Nike, Adidas or Puma? Adidas PlayStation or Xbox? Xbox

Date of Birth: 26 May 1993 Place of Birth: Okakarara Nickname: Wazza

Current club: Costa Do Sol FC (Mozambique) Previous club: Mighty Gunners FC

Career achievements:

Winning the First Division with Life Fighters FC in 2016 and winning two Man of the Match accolades against Senegal and Zimbabwe at the ongoing 2021 Cosafa Cup.

Favourite local footballer/s:

Marcel Papama and Denzil Haoseb are two of my favourite players.

Your most memorable match:

Scoring two goals against Madagascar during the African Nations Championship (Chan) qualifiers in 2019. We won the match 2-0.

Biggest career disappointment:

I would say after qualifying for Chan 2021, and I come back home without scoring a goal.

Your steady rise at national team and club levels have been widely hailed, with many saying you are destined for greatness. What has kept you at the top over the years?

Well, I have been working hard and I am motivated by people who always tell me that my time will come, and I’m very grateful to them for always believing in me as faith is what keeps me going.

You were one of the key players for the Brave Warriors at the 2021 Chan tournament, talk to us about that experience.

Every game you play has its own aspects and I continue to learn daily. Wearing the Brave Warriors’ jersey is not easy, especially making it into the first 11 players. I owe all these performances to my country, as I see myself as a servant just like others who are in the police force and defence serving the nation with pride. So in a nutshell, I enjoyed the Chan experience as it was an eye-opener on things I needed to work on, especially on becoming a professional.

With the experience and exposure gained at this year’s Chan, how have you grown as a player and as a person?

Well, as a player, I really gained a lot although I didn’t score at Chan. But I have worked hard on that and now scoring two goals in two games at the 2021 Cosafa Cup is proof of how hard I have been working behind the scene.

You recently signed a deal with Mozambican club Costa Do Sol FC, tell us how the move came about and the duration of your contract?

The move to Mozambique was made possible by my agents, Futuro Stars Agent Group from South Africa and Namibia’s Kahiriri Consultancy, who are both my managing partners. They are the ones who helped me make it all possible. The deal is for six months for now, something I appreciate a lot. With my managing partners and my performance, we will see what the future holds.

You are one of many players who were accorded an opportunity to play at this year’s ongoing Cosafa Cup in South Africa. How important is this tournament in developing talent within the region?

Firstly, I would like to thank Cosafa for giving us the opportunity to come here and showcase our talents, it’s indeed a great platform. This tournament is important to us as a country and as a region because as much as we showcase our talents, it is also a huge stepping stone for many players to go on and sign for big clubs across their borders.

What keeps you motivated as a player?

I just love the game of football so much. I keep pushing myself every day and I always tell myself that “Hey, Wazza you can do better than yesterday.”

How has Covid-19 affected you generally as an athlete?

I don’t really know what to say but Covid-19 has caused a lot of setbacks for everyone and not only for me. It’s really too many setbacks to mention.

Your ambitions for 2021 and beyond.

Well, I just want to keep growing as a player and hopefully see myself playing somewhere bigger in the near future. I still have few more years to offer something good to my fans.