Zambian Pair Prove Future is Bright Despite Loss in Champions League Thriller

Last night Anfield played host to seven goal European epic, and certainly one that will stay long in the memory.

Austrian league winners FC Red Bull Salzburg travelled to Liverpool, aiming to topple the current European champions.

Although contested between two European clubs, the game was very much an African affair, with 9 players from the continent taking part.

But it was two young talents from Zambia that shone through on the most demanding of stages.

Enock Mwepu and Patson Daka are two of Salzburg’s most exciting prospects, both of which a product of Division One side Kafue Celtics.

Salzburg is known within footballing circles for having an excellent scouting system, and one that manages to extract exciting talent from corners of the world other clubs are more reluctant to travel to.

Lee Kawanu, the Celtics’ owner, gave an insight into why the Austrian club keeps a close ear to the ground. He explained that “[t]here are two key parts from our perspective: the way they scout and the way they handle players”.

Kawanu believes that the way Salzburg approaches scouting in Zambia gives them an edge over other competitors.

Salzburg’s two latest acquisitions, Mwepu and Daka, are still at the very early stages of their careers; Daka has six goals to his name already this season, and with Mwepu going the full 90 against one of the best teams in the world, the future looks bright for the pair.

They will be hoping to emulate the successes of two of their opposing numbers from last night, Senegal’s Sadio Mané, and Guinea’s Naby Keita, currently two of the world’s best, both of whom are Salzburg graduates.