Godfrey Chitalu

Godfrey Chitalu ( born October 22, 1947 in Luanshya, † 27 April 1993 in near Libreville, Gabon ) was a Zambian footballer and coach.

Career

Chitalu began his career at Roan United and moved in 1965 to Kitwe United. In 1968 he succeeded in a season 81 goals. In 1970 he moved to Kabwe Warriors, with whom Chitalu in a row won the championship of the first Zambian League three times and where he played until his retirement in late 1982 and worked as a coach. As a national player of Zambia, he participated, among others, at the African Cup of Nations in 1978 and the Summer Olympics in Moscow, where he scored a goal against the USSR with a 1-3 defeat of Zambia. Overall, he is denied 103 A- international matches for Zambia and have scored 74 goals. Chitalu came the Gabon Air Disaster along with other members of the Zambian national team in 1993 lost their lives. He had taken over the post of national coach in the same year.

Reception

Chitalus nickname was Ucar based on the acronym of the battery manufacturer Union Carbide. The name was given to him by a popular Zambian sports reporter who was then Chitalus alluded energetic dribbling and Torabschlüsse. Especially his successful solo efforts often left the audience with a lasting impression. Chitalu was also considered a hothead, who was criticized for his sometimes unsportsmanlike conduct on the pitch many times. However, it always outweighed the admiration of his skills as a striker, which is why he became in the 1970s the national football icon and was elected to Zambia's player of the year five times. In 1981, he was honored by Zambian President Kenneth Kaunda with a high public order. In 2006 he was appointed by the African Football Federation as one of the 200 best African player of the past 50 years.

In calendar year 1972 Chitalu should have scored according to the Zambian Football Association a total of 107 goals in national competitions as well as the African Cup of Champions Clubs and some international matches. In connection with the scoring record of Lionel Messi in 2012 (91 Goals in official matches during the calendar year ) was this statistic that could make the Argentines this record in dispute, internationally known. FIFA declared not to have the availability of data and announced an audit.