Online Reporter
Takudzwa Chitsiga
Zimpapers Sports Hub
ZIMBABWEAN coaches, Knowledge Jemwa and Tafadzwa Leslie Lee, are bringing the “Everton way” of playing to young footballers across the United States and Canada.
The duo is part of an elite group of 30 coaches worldwide, who were selected by the Everton Football Academy, to represent the club during its international summer schools.
Jemwa and Lee are the only two Zimbabwean coaches who have been chosen for these roles.
This northern hemisphere summer, they travelled to eight US states, including California, Pennsylvania, and Colorado, as well as two Canadian provinces, British Columbia and Manitoba, to run coaching sessions for young footballers.
Both coaches have extensive experience with Jemwa holding a UEFA B Diploma.
Jemwa has expressed his desire to bring his knowledge back to his home country one day.
“In the future, I would love to come back home and coach local clubs or the national team,” he said.
Lee, a Level Two coach, has spent significant time in the United Arab Emirates, where he coached at top-tier academies like Real Madrid Dubai.
“The way soccer has been rising here in North America is amazing, and I would wish Zimbabwe could do the same in terms of their system,” Lee said.
He also highlighted a key difference he’s observed in North American youth soccer: the meticulous data collection of young players.
“Data of youth players here as young as five years is captured in their database — age, name, corresponds. This helps or avoids age cheating, and it’s one of the amazing things they do out here.”
Jemwa and Lee have been coaching at Everton International Soccer Schools in North America since 2023, teaching the club’s distinct style of play to hundreds of young athletes.
Their work not only develops the next generation of players but also builds a bridge between Zimbabwean coaching talent and the global soccer community.
