Lameck Banda – Arsenal Tula’s mercurial attacking talent

Lameck Banda has been a Zambian prodigy since his mid-teens as he has grown into a fully-fledged Zambian National and had a winding road in his career till this point. He moved to South African giants, Mamelodi Sundowns in his mid-teens with a loan to Zambian powerhouse, Zesco United as when he turned 18, he would trek to Europe for a trial with Arsenal Tula. Interestingly, he would play other Zambian stars, Enock Mwepu and Patson Daka in a trial game against Red Bull Salzburg, putting in a phenomenal performance to earn himself a contract with the Russian side as he would spend a year on the bench with meagre minutes before joining Maccabi Netanya and then Maccabi Petah Tikva on loan where he starred in Israel this season as he is likely to be on the move once more.

Banda has been utilized as a right wing-back at Arsenal Tula while also being deployed on the left-flank, cutting onto his stronger right foot to great effect as well as on the right flank nominally in Israel this season. He is stout and compact winger as what he lacks in height, he makes up for in close control, pace and directness as his season in Israel has been transformative for his career as his experienced regular European football for the first time and thrived. The 21-year-old Zambian International has a phenomenal first touch to drive at goal and create high quality shooting opportunities for himself while he has the movement and intelligence to make well-timed runs at the back-post. He would stretch the pitch as a left-winger, receiving the ball and looking to cut inside, constantly challenging his fullback with his dribbling while he has shown an ability to cross and shoot effectively with his weaker left foot which is transformative for his game. He can receive possession in the middle and work connections as he is developing into a well-rounded wide talent.

Banda had the perfect trial game against Red Bull Salzburg as he added the most threat to his Arsenal Tula side as he was playing on the right flank, constantly providing a threat with his dribbling and directness, leading his team’s counter-attacks as in one situation, he showed calm to cut past a sliding Andre Ramalho to open the scoring with a brilliant finish. The attacker who was 18 at the time, provided a constant threat as the best player for the Russian side as there was little doubt when they decided to sign him to a professional contract in the days after the game. Game-time in Russia would be hard to come by as he would be deployed as a wing-back at home to Spartak Moscow as he received possession from a throw-in during added time, taking a touch and curling a wonderful cross into the box onto the head of a teammate for his team to pull one back in a 3-1 loss.

For Maccabi Petah Tikva, he would play as a left-winger most of the time as at home to Hapoel Hadera, he would make a run into the centre from the left flank to get on the end of a cross to redirect a header to the goalkeeper’s near post where the keeper would tip his opportunity onto the post. The 21-year-old would receive possession on the left touchline where he evaded a marker to drive into the box and attempt to clip a cross into the box with his left foot which was cleared at the near post. He was positioned near the touchline once more, making a little movement into the centre to receive possession behind his marker to receive a through ball in the half-space, setting up for a fake shot to skip past another defender as he drove into the box to hammer a strike at the goalkeeper with his right foot. The Zambian attacker’s next opportunity would be a goal as he received possession as he tucked inside from the left flank, controlling and driving the ball forward with his stronger right foot to lash a deflected strike past the keeper with his weaker left foot.

He was involved in another goalscoring opportunity as he received possession inside the box with his stronger right foot which was his back-leg allowing him to control the ball in between two opposition defenders before he laid off a pass to a teammate with the same foot as his teammate was fouled for a penalty. Banda has an intuition for runs and movement on the flank, knowing when to make well-timed runs to the back-post, when to make vertical runs into the centre to receive possession and when to tuck into the half-space or into the central areas to receive possession. This along with his dribbling allows him to be able to create high quality opportunities for himself as when a teammate in the ten space received possession, Banda would begin a burst to make a well-timed run in behind his fullback to receive a through ball, utilizing his first touch with his left foot to direct the ball towards goal to have a 1v1 with the opposition goalkeeper to have a shot saved.

Banda’s first touch is magnificent, especially in terms of his directness as when he receives possession behind the opposition defensive line, he will normally use his first touch to drive the ball towards the opposition goal to create a shooting opportunity for himself as this is another facet of his game that allows him to create high quality opportunities. A few players his age would use the same first touch to cut-back or drive the ball towards the by-line or the flank but the 21-year-old has the understanding to drive the ball towards goal with his first touch while it is also impressive that he allowed the ball to roll across his body and used his weaker foot as attackers would also attempt to use the outside of their right boot to control the ball which would not have been as efficient or effective. The 21-year-old would utilize another tool in his repertoire to generate a high-quality opportunity, receiving the ball on the left flank, skipping past two defenders to work a one-two with the striker for a run in behind as the goalkeeper was on hand to grab possession before Banda was able to chip the ball. Banda can create shooting opportunities with his dribbling, the timing of his runs and instinctive combination play.

He would utilize his dribbling and connection play on the flank once more, receiving possession by the touchline, surging past a defender as another marker moved to the flank to close him down in a 2v1 situation for Banda utilize the outside of his right boot to work a pass for a teammate in the box to attempt a cross to the back-post. In the pressing phase, the Zambian would regain possession with a tackle to play an outside of the boot pass to a teammate which would lead to his team having a 1v1 opportunity on goal. However, Banda would make an intelligent run into the box where he would’ve perfectly positioned to receive a pass and tap the opportunity into goal. The 21-year-old was involved in the creation of another opportunity when he made a perfectly timed run to receive possession in behind the opposition defence, holding possession from two opposition defenders to flick a pass to an overlapping fullback who sent a cross into the box for an attacker to head wide. He received possession on the left, cutting inside on his right foot to attempt another one-two with his striker but his striker’s pass was too light and was intercepted.

At home to Ashdod, he showed his potential as build-up conduit, tucking into the centre of the pitch to receive possession and play a one-touch flick to a teammate on the flank as his teammate in the nine-space made a run to the flank, Banda continued his run into the centre where he would receive possession in behind the defensive line to blast a shot over from close range while on the half-turn in a situation where he should have scored. He would be involved in the creation of another opportunity when he received possession on the left flank to thread a through ball into the channels for a teammate to cross into the box. The 21-year-old utilized his immaculate sense of directional first touch to create another high-quality opportunity for himself, receiving possession in the nine-space on the counter-attack, using his first touch to guide the ball past a marker and drive at goal to open his body and have his shot saved.

The 21-year-old generated another high quality shooting opportunity for himself, receiving possession after a turnover where he headed the ball to a teammate who played a pass for another teammate behind him for Banda to intelligently run into space and receive possession on the left side of the opposition box, nonchalantly flicking the ball past an opposition defender with the outside of his right boot to apply the finish from close range as he notched a goal with sharp movement, connections and his dribbling ability. Banda showed more exemplary combination play from the flank as he made an intelligent move into space from a throw-in, using the outside of his boot to generate space and play a back-pass he then received possession to play a one-touch pass for a teammate to drive into the centre. He created an opportunity after making a tackle in counter-pressure, cutting past another defender to thread a pass into the box for a teammate to have a 1v1 opportunity saved.

Banda would get his assist when he received possession on the left flank to hold possession and thread a pass in between two defenders to a teammate who took a touch and cut into the box to apply the finish. He should’ve had a second goal when he received possession inside the box and side-footed a high-quality opportunity straight at the goalkeeper for a teammate to score the rebound. His movement and vertical runs from the left flank are sublime and allow him to get into good goalscoring positions as his team would regain possession on the right flank as once the ball was played into the centre, he made a phenomenal run from the left flank into the nine-space, dragging a fullback with him to create space as a teammate would look to play a through ball for him which was intercepted. He received possession on the left flank to stand his marker up, cut inside to his right foot to surge past two defenders as he drove into the box, shielding the ball from one defender to cut past another to fire a shot wide of the far post with his weaker left foot. After a turnover, he received possession on the counter, turning and skipping past his marker to surge into the opposition half and poke a pass to a teammate in the box who switched the ball to the weak side.

Away to Hapoel Hadera, he made a well-timed burst to charge past his marker and receive possession and play a cut-back into the box with his left foot for his cross to be cleared. He was holding a position close to the left touchline once he received possession to cut inside, evading a marker with the ball on the outside of his right before shielding the ball from another marker to attempt a pass to a teammate which was intercepted. The 21-year-old was perfectly positioned to intercept a switch ball in the opposition half to drive towards the opposition goal, playing an outside of the boot pass to a teammate as he received the lay-off in the box to have a shot blocked as he managed to score the rebound. After a turnover, he then played a one-touch pass into the centre as his team would win a turnover on the opposite flank for Banda to tuck into the nine-space, making a run in between the fullback and centre-back before veering towards the flank to receive possession, cut past two defenders and fire a shot straight at the goalkeeper from range.

Away to Hapoel Jerusalem, moved into the half-space to receive possession driving towards the opposite flank to spread the ball to the right winger who cut inside and had his shot blocked. After a turnover, Banda received possession with his back to goal, using his first touch to play a one-touch pass into the half-space to receive possession before making a run onto the flank where he received possession to cut the ball onto his stronger right foot and lob a cross into the box. The attacker would then move into a more central position closer to the striker before moving to the right flank where his skillset would translate into a position he has played before. After a deflected cross, he would play a one-touch flick to a teammate before making a run on the flank as he did not receive possession. He received possession in the right half-space to turn and work a one-two with a teammate as attempted to curl a shot at goal with his left foot, but his shot was blocked.

He received a clearance on the right flank, controlling the ball and laying off a pass to the centre before making a run into the half-space where he received possession once more as he was brought down but a teammate managed to get into the box and have a cut-back blocked. He moved from the centre of the pitch to the left flank to win a turnover, drive the ball forward before cutting into the centre to play the ball to a teammate in the centre who spread the ball to the opposite flank for his team to have a shot blocked. He showed his ability from set-pieces when he would loft a corner in from the right flank which landed on the head of a teammate to head past the goalkeeper for a goal which was disallowed. He then lofted another cross into the box towards the back-post where a teammate had another header saved.

Banda’s statistics in Israel back-up especially in regard to playing for the worst team in the league as Maccabi Petah Tikva finished with the least amount of points and only 6 wins out of 33 games in the last season. The 21-year-old finished the season with the most dribbles in the league as well as with the 3rd most shots taken in the league as 59% of his shots came from inside the box with his phenomenal sense for movement into the box and diligent shot locations. He finished in the top 10 in touches in the opposition box with his various routes of driving the ball into that area. He finished 12th in expected goals with an 8.9XG and 8 goals as well as a 2.35 expected assist number and 2 assists. For U23 players, he finished in the top 10 with crosses while being in the top 10 in crosses from the left flank and top 25 in crosses from the right flank, showing his ability to cross with both feet. For through balls amongst U23 players, he is in the top 25 whilst being in the top 10 in key passes as well as in the top 30 in all players in the Israeli League. He leads the whole Israeli League in progressive runs while being in the top 10 for U23s in deep completions as he finished in the top 20 in ball progression by runs according to the WyScout ranking system.

Banda has had a phenomenal loan as he has improved his potential as a left winger as he already had the potential to be a phenomenal right winger. His ability to receive possession on the left flank and weave into the box by cutting past his marker as well as being able to initiate elaborate one-twos in and around the box allow him to generate high quality opportunities for himself inside the box as he is capable of shooting with both his right and left foot. His intelligence for making runs in the wide areas allow him to get into positions where can play cut-backs from the by-line on the left flank with his left foot as he is much more well-rounded crosser with his right foot. He can curl crosses from deep or wrap his foot around the ball to really guide a delivery onto the head of a teammate. The 21-year-old’s movement also allows him to tuck inside from the flank to move into high quality goalscoring positions inside the opposition box as he will need to show more calm and cleaner finishing in the future to take advantage of some of the situations he gets into, especially in scanning to check the width of the goal, his position and the position of the goal and showing more care in placing his shots for one-touch finishes.

He can jump high when he has room inside the opposition box while in a more organized pressing system he will be able to position himself to make interceptions and tackles. He has the potential to also become a build-up conduit from the flank with his penchant for intuitive one-two and run sequences on the flank to get in behind the opposition defence to get into crossing and shooting situations. He can also work intelligent flicks to teammates after receiving deep passes in the half-space or one-touch passes into the half-space when receiving possession in the wide zone as there are situations when he will lay-off the ball instead of looking for connections. His directional first touch in driving the ball towards the opposition box to create shooting opportunites for himself could mean that he could have a future as a second-striker playing closer to the centre of the pitch in the future. To move into the centre, he will need to improve his angling, weighting and precision of his through balls as the youngster attempted many through balls and has the vision for penetrative passing but will need to work on this facet of his game as he misplaced many passes. With Banda, a team gets a 21-year-old who can play on both flanks extremely effectively, cross and shoot with both feet as well as being able to be a functional piece for his team in a variety of roles.

Banda is an intriguing option on the summer market as he will be available for cheap given the fact that his parent club, Arsenal Tula have been relegated and may need money with the situation in Russia and Ukraine as well as the 21-year-old only having a year left on his contract. He would be a cost-effective replacement for Luis Sinisterra at Feyenoord as the club are set to lose a glut of wide players like Alireza Jahanbakhsh and Reiss Nelson as well. He would suit Arne Slot’s system phenomenally, especially in cutting inside from the left with the fullback overlapping him or making an underlapping run, creating space for him to cross or shoot. He would also be a good replacement for Jesper Karlsson at AZ Alkmaar while he could replace Luis Openda at Vitesse Arnhem. Heerenveen, Groningen and Utrecht would also be good stepping stones for the youngster as would Stuttgart in the Bundesliga as he would fit into Pellegrino Matarazzo’s 4-3-3 shape or his three at the back shapes as a different attacking profile to their current set of attackers. Mainz and Hamburg in the 2. Bundesliga would also be good stepping stones for him as would Basel in Switzerland. In Ligue 1, newly promoted side Toulouse, Reims, Brest, Montpellier, Lens and Strasbourg would also be good moves for him as would Celtic in Scotland. His appearances for Zambia in international football would also allow him to gain a work permit as Swansea and any Championship side looking to gain promotion would be a good landing spot for him. Brentford would be a good move for him as they have had success in developing forward of his ilk such as Brian Mbeumo. Teams like Vitoria SC, Santa Clara, Maritimo and Famalicao would hone his skillset and improve his defensive ability as well as his tactical versatility to make him a more well-rounded attacker. In Serie A, Sassulo, Torino, Atalanta and Verona should be interested in this young prospect who will probably move for a cut-price fee this summer.