Isaac Chansa (born 23 March 1984), popularly known as "Zife", is a
Zambia
Zambia, officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central Africa, Central, Southern Africa, Southern and East Africa. It is typically referred to being in South-Central Africa or Southern Africa. It is bor ...
n professional
footballer
A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...
who plays as a
midfielder
In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in t ...
for
Forest Rangers in the
Zambia Super League
The Zambia Super League, known as the MTN Group, MTN Super League for sponsor (commercial), sponsorship purposes, is the top association football sports league, league created in 1962 by the Football Association of Zambia. The winners of the leag ...
.
Club career
Chambishi and Power Dynamos
Chansa was born in
Kitwe
Kitwe is the third largest city in terms of infrastructure development (after Lusaka and Ndola) and second largest city in terms of size and population (after Lusaka) in Zambia. With a population of 517,543 (''2010 census provisional'') Kitwe is ...
and began his professional club career at
Chambishi
Chambishi is a town in Kalulushi District in the Copperbelt Province of Zambia. According to the 2021 Census its population stands at slightly above 11,000. It is located on the T3 road (Zambia), T3 road (Kitwe-Chingola Dual Carriageway) between ...
, but he didn't find his place in the first squad and later moved to
Power Dynamos. With Dynamos, he appeared in 45 league matches, scoring 16 goals between 2002 and 2004. He was in Dynamos'
2003 Zambian Cup, 2003
Zambian Coca-Cola Cup and
2004 Zambian Charity Shield winning squad. He has also appeared in
2002 African Cup Winners' Cup.
Orlando Pirates
From 2004 to 2007, he moved to
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...
and played for
Premier Soccer League
The Premier Soccer League (PSL) is the administrative body for professional soccer leagues and cups in South Africa. It is based in Johannesburg, and was founded in 1996 following an agreement between the National Soccer League and the remnant ...
side
Orlando Pirates
Orlando Pirates Football Club, referred to as simply Pirates, is a South African professional football club based in Orlando, Soweto that plays in the top-tier system of Football in South Africa known as Betway Premiership. The team plays i ...
, where he scored 7 goals in 43 league matches. He was in Pirates'
Premier Soccer League 2004–05 and 2005–06 Runners-up squad. With Pirates, he won the friendly tournament
Vodacom Challenge in 2005.
In 2020, then Orlando manager
Milutin Sredojevic, has identified Chansa as one of the best players he has ever coached, thanks to the player's big heart and true discipline.
Helsingborgs
He later joined
Swedish Superettan
Superettan (; ) is an association football league and the second highest league in the Swedish football league system, league system of Swedish football, Swedish men's football. Contested by 16 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and rel ...
team
Helsingborgs IF
Helsingborgs Idrottsförening, commonly referred to as Helsingborgs IF, Helsingborg or (especially locally) HIF (), is a Swedish professional football club located in Helsingborg. They play in the Swedish second tier, Superettan, following releg ...
for the 2007–08 season to team up with former
South Africa national team coach
Stuart Baxter. Chansa played there until 2009. In late 2006, while still playing for Pirates, Chansa was banned by the
PSL
PSL may refer to:
Sport
*Pakistan Super League, a Twenty20 cricket league
*Palau Soccer League, top division association football league in Palau
*Pilipinas Super League, a professional basketball league
*Philippine Super Liga, a defunct profes ...
for three months (nine suspended) after he was found guilty of assaulting an assistant referee during Pirates’ clash against
Jomo Cosmos
Jomo Cosmos is a South African soccer club based in Johannesburg that plays in the ABC Motsepe League. The club is owned and coached by South African football legend Jomo Sono.
At the end of the 2021–22 National First Division season, the ...
.
With Helsingborgs IF, he appeared in
UEFA Cup
The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , , "little star", is a Typography, typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a star (heraldry), heraldic star.
Computer scientists and Mathematici ...
matches in 2007 and
UEFA Europa League
The UEFA Europa League (UEL), usually known simply as the Europa League, is an annual association football, football club competition organised since 1971 by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European footb ...
qualifying matches in 2009.
Second stint with Orlando
After the end of his contract in Sweden with Helsingborgs IF, he returned on 1 February 2010 to his former club
Orlando Pirates
Orlando Pirates Football Club, referred to as simply Pirates, is a South African professional football club based in Orlando, Soweto that plays in the top-tier system of Football in South Africa known as Betway Premiership. The team plays i ...
. He signed a pre-contract with Pirates' Soweto rivals
Kaizer Chiefs to join the club in July 2012. He played for the team, where he had already used to play earlier, a season and a half and featured in 41 matches, where he scored 12 goals.
He also won the
Premier Soccer League
The Premier Soccer League (PSL) is the administrative body for professional soccer leagues and cups in South Africa. It is based in Johannesburg, and was founded in 1996 following an agreement between the National Soccer League and the remnant ...
title in 2010 with Orlando and he is still considered as Pirates legend.
Henan Jianye
In June 2012, Orlando Pirates confirmed that he moved to
Chinese club
Henan Jianye F.C. for a transfer fee of 700,000 US Dollars.
Chansa, who scored a spectacular goal against
Golden Arrows at
Orlando Stadium
Orlando Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium in Soweto, a township in Johannesburg, in Gauteng province in South Africa. It is the home venue for Orlando Pirates Football Club, a professional soccer team that plays in the Premier Soccer League a ...
to wrap up Pirates' league title on the final day of the season two years ago, joined the Henan Jianye, which is based in
Zhengzhou
Zhengzhou is the capital of Henan, China. Located in northern Henan, it is one of the nine National central city, national central cities in China, and serves as the political, economic, technological, and educational center of the province. Th ...
in the province of
Henan
Henan; alternatively Honan is a province in Central China. Henan is home to many heritage sites, including Yinxu, the ruins of the final capital of the Shang dynasty () and the Shaolin Temple. Four of the historical capitals of China, Lu ...
. The club was promoted to the
Chinese Super League
The Chinese Football Super League (), commonly known as the Chinese Super League or the CSL (), also known as the China Resources Beverage Chinese Football Super League for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Ch ...
in 2006. They finished third in 2009. Chansa joined
Zambia
Zambia, officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central Africa, Central, Southern Africa, Southern and East Africa. It is typically referred to being in South-Central Africa or Southern Africa. It is bor ...
teammate and former
Jomo Cosmos
Jomo Cosmos is a South African soccer club based in Johannesburg that plays in the ABC Motsepe League. The club is owned and coached by South African football legend Jomo Sono.
At the end of the 2021–22 National First Division season, the ...
star
Chris Katongo at Henan.
It was not a suitable move for him and after an even more chaotic and the unsatisfying season of
Chinese Super League
The Chinese Football Super League (), commonly known as the Chinese Super League or the CSL (), also known as the China Resources Beverage Chinese Football Super League for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Ch ...
in 2012, the club was relegated to the second division and he came back to
Zambia
Zambia, officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central Africa, Central, Southern Africa, Southern and East Africa. It is typically referred to being in South-Central Africa or Southern Africa. It is bor ...
.
Zanaco F.C.
In 2013, after the end of the Chinese Super League season, Chansa became a free agent after his Chinese club Henan Jianye offloaded him. He then came back to
Zambia
Zambia, officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central Africa, Central, Southern Africa, Southern and East Africa. It is typically referred to being in South-Central Africa or Southern Africa. It is bor ...
and hired by
Zanaco until he get a new club. It was announced that, Chansa has joined FAZ/MTN Super league defending champions Zanaco as a guest player. He scored 5 goals in 25 Zambia Super League matches from 2013 to 2014.
Shillong Lajong
On 8 August 2014, it was confirmed that,
India
India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
n
I-League
The I-League is the men's second professional football division of the Indian football league system behind the Indian Super League. Administered by the All India Football Federation, it is currently contested by 13 clubs. It operates as a s ...
club
Shillong Lajong FC
Shillong Lajong Football Club (founded as Lajong SC) is an Indian professional Association football, football club based in Shillong, Meghalaya. The club is currently competing in the I-League, the second tier of the Indian football league syst ...
have completed the signing of Zambian International and
African Cup of Nations
The Africa Cup of Nations, commonly abbreviated as AFCON and officially known as the TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations for sponsorship reasons, is the main biennial international men's association football competition in Africa. It is s ...
2012 winner Isaac Chansa as their 3rd foreigner.
On his new contract, Chansa said that "I am happy and look forward to this new challenge. I will do my best to contribute in the team’s success in any way I can and repay the faith shown in me by the team management."
He played only few
2014–15 Indian Federation Cup matches for Lajong and have not appeared in any
I-League
The I-League is the men's second professional football division of the Indian football league system behind the Indian Super League. Administered by the All India Football Federation, it is currently contested by 13 clubs. It operates as a s ...
match.
NorthEast United
After signing a short-term contract with Shillong Lajong, he loaned out to their affiliated
Indian Super League
The Indian Super League (ISL) is a professional association football league in India and the highest level of the Indian football league system. Administered by the All India Football Federation (AIFF) and its commercial partner Football Sport ...
side
NorthEast United FC
NorthEast United Football Club is an Indian professional football club based in Guwahati, Assam that competes in the Indian Super League (ISL), the top flight of Indian football. The club was founded on 13 April 2014 during the inaugural sea ...
in 2014.
He made his Indian Super League debut on 16 October against giants
Atlético de Kolkata
ATK Football Club (also known as Atlético de Kolkata in association with Atlético Madrid) was an Indian professional football club based in Kolkata, West Bengal. The club competed in the ISL, the top flight of Indian football. They were ...
in a 2–0 loss match. With the NorthEast, he appeared in 8 league matches.
Mitra Kukar
In 2015, he moved to
Liga 2 (Indonesia)
Liga 2 ( English: ''League Two''), officially known as Pegadaian Liga 2 for sponsorship reasons, is the second-tier of the football competition system in Indonesia, organized by Football Association of Indonesia (PSSI). The competition starte ...
outfit
PS Mitra Kukar and appeared in few league matches but lifted the General Sudirman Cup in 2015.
Back to Zanaco
He returned to
Zambia
Zambia, officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central Africa, Central, Southern Africa, Southern and East Africa. It is typically referred to being in South-Central Africa or Southern Africa. It is bor ...
and signed with his previous club
Zanaco F.C. for 2 seasons. He played there until 2017 and won the
2016 Zambian Super League.
Royal Eagles
Chansa after his stint with Zambian champions
Zanaco FC
Zanaco FC is a Zambian football (soccer), football club based in Lusaka that plays in the Zambian Premier League, MTN/FAZ Super Division. They play their home games at Sunset Stadium in Lusaka. Zanaco Football Club was formed in 1972 as a social ...
, returned to South Africa to reunite with
Royal Eagles F.C. coach
Kosta Papic. The Serbian manager was at the helm at Pirates during Chansa's first stint with ''"the Bucaneers"'' from 2004 to 2007.
"Chansa is already training with the club and has signed but is waiting the issuing of his work permit", Papic told to kickoff.com on 8 March 2017. Eagles were chasing promotion this season and feel the experience of the Zambian midfielder helped them with that target.
International career
Chansa made his senior international debut for
Zambia
Zambia, officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central Africa, Central, Southern Africa, Southern and East Africa. It is typically referred to being in South-Central Africa or Southern Africa. It is bor ...
on 1 May 2004 against
Zimbabwe
file:Zimbabwe, relief map.jpg, upright=1.22, Zimbabwe, relief map
Zimbabwe, officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Bots ...
in a 1–1 draw match, where he scored a goal. Chansa was part of the Zambian
2006 African Nations Cup team, which finished third in group C in the first round of competition, thus failing to secure qualification for the quarter-finals. Then he also represented his country in numerous
FIFA World Cup
The FIFA World Cup, often called the World Cup, is an international association football competition among the senior List of men's national association football teams, men's national teams of the members of the FIFA, Fédération Internatio ...
qualification matches alongside the main rounds of later
African Nations Cup
The Africa Cup of Nations, commonly abbreviated as AFCON and officially known as the TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations for sponsorship reasons, is the main biennial international men's association football competition in Africa. It is s ...
.
Chansa's biggest achievement is winning the
African Cup of Nations
The Africa Cup of Nations, commonly abbreviated as AFCON and officially known as the TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations for sponsorship reasons, is the main biennial international men's association football competition in Africa. It is s ...
for his country in February 2012, defeating
Ivory Coast
Ivory Coast, also known as Côte d'Ivoire and officially the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, is a country on the southern coast of West Africa. Its capital city of Yamoussoukro is located in the centre of the country, while its largest List of ci ...
. He was also part of the
2014 Zambia national team that took on
Japan
Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
in the Pre-World Cup International Friendly in the USA.
Between 2004 and 2016, he earned 69 international caps, representing Zambia and scoring 3 goals.
Career statistics
International goals
:''Scores and results list Zambia's goal tally first.''
Honours
Zambia
*
Africa Cup of Nations
The Africa Cup of Nations, commonly abbreviated as AFCON and officially known as the TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations for sponsorship reasons, is the main biennial international men's association football competition in Africa. It is s ...
:
2012
2012 was designated as:
*International Year of Cooperatives
*International Year of Sustainable Energy for All
Events January
*January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins.
* January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...
Orlando Pirates
*
MTN 8 Cuup:
2010
The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...
*
Premier Soccer League
The Premier Soccer League (PSL) is the administrative body for professional soccer leagues and cups in South Africa. It is based in Johannesburg, and was founded in 1996 following an agreement between the National Soccer League and the remnant ...
:
2010–11
1 (one, unit, unity) is a number, numeral, and glyph. It is the first and smallest positive integer of the infinite sequence of natural numbers. This fundamental property has led to its unique uses in other fields, ranging from science to sp ...
,
2011–12
*
Nedbank Cup
The Nedbank Cup is the current name of South Africa's Premier Soccer League, premier club association football, soccer knockout tournament. While many formats have been used over the years, the tournament has always been based on the idea of gi ...
:
2011–12
Zanaco
*
Zambia Super League
The Zambia Super League, known as the MTN Group, MTN Super League for sponsor (commercial), sponsorship purposes, is the top association football sports league, league created in 1962 by the Football Association of Zambia. The winners of the leag ...
:
2016
2016 was designated as:
* International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly.
* International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...
See also
*
Zambia international footballers
References
External links
*
Isaac Chansa transfersat aiscore.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chansa, Isaac
1984 births
Living people
Footballers from Kitwe
Zambian men's footballers
21st-century Zambian sportsmen
Zambian expatriate men's footballers
Zambia men's international footballers
2006 Africa Cup of Nations players
2008 Africa Cup of Nations players
2010 Africa Cup of Nations players
2012 Africa Cup of Nations players
Zambian expatriate sportspeople in Sweden
Zambian expatriate sportspeople in South Africa
Zambian expatriate sportspeople in China
Expatriate men's footballers in Sweden
Expatriate men's soccer players in South Africa
Expatriate men's footballers in China
Expatriate men's footballers in India
Expatriate men's footballers in Iraq
I-League players
Indian Super League players
Helsingborgs IF players
Men's association football midfielders
Orlando Pirates F.C. players
Allsvenskan players
Henan F.C. players
2013 Africa Cup of Nations players
Zanaco F.C. players
Shillong Lajong FC players
NorthEast United FC players
Chinese Super League players
Africa Cup of Nations–winning players
Forest Rangers F.C. players
Zambia men's A' international footballers
2016 African Nations Championship players