Ackim Musenge

Ackim Musenge (born 7 October 1949) is a Zambian former footballer and coach.

Musenge was born on 7 October 1949 in Mufulira.

His father Diamond Musenge was a carpenter while his mother Eness was a house-wife.

He was the first born in a family of seven of which four were boys.

His brother Japhen also played for Wanderers.

He attended Mufulira Mine School and later Kantanshi Secondary School.

At the age of 15 Musenge joined Zambian Division II side Butondo Western Tigers, one of the teams sponsored by Mufulira Division of Roan Copper Mines.

He later formed part of the first Zambia School's national team which was coached by John Green and managed by King George High School teacher Glyn Peters.

During his time with Zambia Schools, Musenge played in high-profile friendly matches against English youth teams such as West Ham United, Ipswich Town and Derby County youth teams.

At Tigers, Musenge who started off as an attacking midfielder and occasionally played on the right wing, was a regular goal scorer.

In 1966, he helped the team gain promotion to Division I and went on to become captain.

Musenge was first called to the national team by John Green as a 19-year-old in 1968 and made his debut when Zambia played a friendly match against Tanzania on 24 October 1968, in preparation for a World Cup qualifier against Sudan.

Due to the superb pairing of Dickson Makwaza and Dick Chama at the heart of Zambia's defence, Musenge would spend some time as a squad player without seeing much action.

In 1969, he scored 18 goals in all competitions.

In the early '70s, Samuel "Zoom" Ndhlovu, who was Wanderers' coach but would also double as Tigers coach from time to time since they shared the same sponsor, noticed some defensive qualities in Musenge's play and converted him into a defender to shore up a leaky defence.

In a CAN 1972 qualifier in Kinshasa in June 1971 which Zambia lost 3–0, Musenge replaced midfielder Richard Stephenson as a second-half substitute and when he did cement a regular spot in the team, it was as a left-back.

He was in the team that beat Morocco 4–0 in October 1973 in a World Cup qualifier and was also in the Zambian team that defeated Nigeria 7–4 in aggregate after a 5–1 first leg victory in Lusaka, to qualify to CAN 1974.

He featured at the tournament in March 1974 where Zambia reached the final only to lose to Zaire after a replay.

In April 1975, Musenge was transferred to Wanderers along with Brines Mulenga and Gerald Mungule.

This was a controversial move in that Tigers alleged that they were being victimised by mine management who ordered them to surrender the three players to Wanderers who in turn gave Tigers three reserve players.

Tigers officials protested to the Football Association of Zambia (FAZ) to no avail, and labelled mine management "pro-Wanderers. Many have pointed to this forced transfer of Tigers' best players as what led to the decline in the team's fortunes.

His transition to Wanderers was seamless as Musenge held his own in a very successful team which had a bevy of stars.

He made his debut on 20 April 1975 in a league match at Shinde Stadium against Ndola United which Wanderers won 2–0.

His versatility was such that he could play right across the backline and that made him very popular with fans.

He settled in the centre-back position and was a good reader of the game, unbeatable in the air and always calm.

His first piece silverware was the 1975 Independence Cup when Wanderers beat Green Buffaloes 2–1.

In December of that same year, confusion reigned when Buffaloes registered 'Ackim Musenge' for the following years' East and Central African Club championship and Wanderers were up in arms, accusing Buffaloes of poaching their player.

It turned out that the player registered by Buffaloes was an 18-year-old cousin of the Wanderers star, who coincidentally shared the same name with him.

Musenge won two league titles in 1976 and 1978 and was runner-up in 1975 and 1977 both times to Green Buffaloes.

He also won the Heroes & Unity Cup in 1976, 2 Charity Shields in 1976 and 1977 and was a three-time winner of the Champion of Champions trophy in 1976, 1977 and 1978.

One of the most disciplined players around, Musenge was appointed Wanderers captain in 1977, the same year in which he was named captain of the national team.

After the retirement of first Makwaza and then Chama in the mid-'70s, Musenge assumed the central defence position and was named captain in January 1977.

Renowned for his exceptional defensive ability and versatility, Musenge is rated as one of the finest defenders to have played for the Zambia national team, which he captained at the 1978 African Cup of Nations in Ghana.

He later coached Mufulira Wanderers and several other club sides.

He led Zambia to the CAN 1978 where they were ejected in the first round.

In 1979, Musenge suffered a broken leg at that year's CECAFA tournament in a 2–2 draw with Tanzania, which would keep him out of action for more than a season.

Musenge fractured his leg in November 1979 at that year's CECAFA tournament and this ended his national team career.

He attempted a comeback in 1981 but a nagging knee injury forced him to quit for good after being operated on.

After a long lay-off, he attempted a comeback in October 1981 but a knee injury, which required an operation brought down the curtain on his playing career.

Musenge began coaching at a young age.