Milutin Sredojevic likely to reunite with Pirates duo in Zambia

Justin Shonga and Augustine Mulenga are set to reunite with their former Orlando Pirates coach Milutin Sredojevic after the Football Association of Zambia (FAZ) chose him to become the new man in charge of the Zambia national team.

Sredojevic - who coached Mulenga and Shonga at Pirates until August last year - has been in talks with the Football Association of Zambia for the past few weeks for the vacant position.

The Serbian will remain "coach-elect" until his appointment is ratified by the sport minister, Emmanuel Mulenga. Ivica Stankovic, who represents Sredojevic, says they are still awaiting for feedback from the government of Zambia.

"Micho has been talking with them and he is now waiting for approval from the minister," Stankovic told Sowetan.

"I don't know what is happening at the moment because I am not with Micho at the moment. He is the one who has been having discussions with them. Micho obviously has the right experience and [I'm] hoping that everything goes well."

In Zambia, the national team coach is not paid by the football association but by the government. On a few occasions in the past, FAZ have elected a particular coach only for the ministry to disapprove.

Former PSL coaches Luc Eymael and Vaselin Jelusic both experienced being chosen by FAZ but failed to get the green light from the government.

Asked if his client can pass the stringent ratification test, Stankovic said: "At this point we can only wait and see my friend. I don't know what is going to happen."

Sredojevic has been without a job since December when he was fired as coach of Egyptian giants Zamalek. He was axed after only a few months on the job after abruptly abandoning the Buccaneers.

If the deal is finalised, Micho will have to jump straight onto the job after the draw for the 2022 Fifa World Cup qualifiers was made recently.

Zambia has been drawn in Group B with Tunisia, Mauritania and Equatorial Guinea.