| Fashion Sakala | |
| Full Name: | Junior Fashion Sakala[1] |
| Birth Date: | 14 March 1997 |
| Birth Place: | Chipata, Zambia |
| Height: | 1.78 m |
| Position: | Forward |
| Currentclub: | Al-Fayha |
| Clubnumber: | 17 |
| Years1: | 2015–2016 |
| Clubs1: | Nchanga Rangers |
| Years2: | 2016–2017 |
| Clubs2: | Zanaco |
| Years3: | 2017–2018 |
| Clubs3: | Spartak-2 Moscow |
| Caps3: | 35 |
| Goals3: | 10 |
| Years4: | 2017–2018 |
| Clubs4: | Spartak Moscow |
| Caps4: | 0 |
| Goals4: | 0 |
| Years5: | 2018–2021 |
| Clubs5: | KV Oostende |
| Caps5: | 80 |
| Goals5: | 24 |
| Years6: | 2021–2023 |
| Clubs6: | Rangers |
| Caps6: | 59 |
| Goals6: | 21 |
| Years7: | 2023– |
| Clubs7: | Al-Fayha |
| Caps7: | 31 |
| Goals7: | 19 |
| Nationalyears1: | 2017 |
| Nationalteam1: | Zambia U20 |
| Nationalcaps1: | 10 |
| Nationalgoals1: | 7 |
| Nationalyears2: | 2019 |
| Nationalteam2: | Zambia U23 |
| Nationalcaps2: | 1 |
| Nationalgoals2: | 0 |
| Nationalyears3: | 2017– |
| Nationalteam3: | Zambia |
| Nationalcaps3: | 32 |
| Nationalgoals3: | 9 |
| Club-Update: | 22:16, 23 May 2024 (UTC) |
| Nationalteam-Update: | 16:56, 23 February 2024 (UTC) |
Junior Fashion Sakala (born 14 March 1997) is a Zambian professional footballer who plays as a forward for Saudi Pro League club Al-Fayha and the Zambia national team.
Sakala played for Zambian clubs Nchanga Rangers and Zanaco, winning the Zambia Super League in 2016 with the latter. He signed for Spartak Moscow in February 2017. Sakala made no first-team appearances for the club, instead appearing for Spartak-2 Moscow in the second tier of Russian football. He joined Belgian club KV Oostende in July 2018, where he scored 31 goals in 102 appearances over three seasons. He joined Rangers on a free transfer in 2021, where he won the Scottish Cup and scored 24 goals in 91 appearances.
Sakala was a member of the Zambia under-20 team that won the 2017 Africa U-20 Cup of Nations. He made his senior international debut in September 2017.
Sakala began his senior career in Zambia with Nchanga Rangers and Zanaco.[2] He helped Zanaco win the Zambia Super League in 2016.[3] In February 2017, he signed a three-year contract with Russian Premier League club FC Spartak Moscow,[4] after being invited for a trial at their training camp in Cyprus.[5] He made his debut in the Russian Football National League for FC Spartak-2 Moscow on 23 March 2017, in a game against FC Baltika Kaliningrad.[6]
On 9 July 2018, he signed a three-year contract with Belgian club KV Oostende.[7]
On 4 May 2021, with his Oostende contract due to expire in the summer, Sakala signed a pre-contract agreement with Scottish Premiership club Rangers on a four-year deal.[8] On 31 July, he made his official debut in a 3–0 win over Livingston in the league.[9] On 31 October, he scored his first hat-trick for Rangers in a 6–1 league victory over Motherwell.[10] On 4 October 2022, Sakala made his UEFA Champions League debut as a substitute in a 2–0 away loss against Liverpool.[11]
On 8 August 2023, Sakala joined Saudi Pro League club Al-Fayha on a two-year contract.[12] [13]
Sakala played youth international football for Zambia at under-20 and under-23 levels.[14] He featured for the Zambia under-20 team that won the 2017 Africa U-20 Cup of Nations,[15] scoring three goals at the tournament.[16] He also played for the under-20 team that reached the quarter-finals of the 2017 FIFA U-20 World Cup, scoring four goals in the tournament.[17] He scored seven goals in ten appearances in total at under-20 level.[14] Sakala played one game for the Zambia under-23 team,[14] against Nigeria at the 2019 Africa U-23 Cup of Nations.[18]
Sakala made his debut for the senior Zambia national team on 2 September 2017, in a 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifier against Algeria, and was sent off for two bookings in the 56th minute.[19] [20]
| Club | Season | League | National cup | League cup | Continental | Other | Total | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | |||
| Spartak-2 Moscow | 2016–17 | Russian Football National League | 4 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 4 | 0 | |||||
| 2017–18 | Russian Football National League | 31 | 10 | — | — | — | — | 31 | 10 | ||||||
| Total | 35 | 10 | — | — | — | — | 35 | 10 | |||||||
| KV Oostende | 2018–19 | Belgian Pro League | 24 | 3 | 5 | 1 | — | — | 9 | 2 | 38 | 6 | |||
| 2019–20 | Belgian Pro League | 28 | 8 | 2 | 1 | — | — | — | 30 | 9 | |||||
| 2020–21 | Belgian Pro League | 28 | 13 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 5 | 3 | 34 | 16 | ||||
| Total | 80 | 24 | 8 | 2 | — | — | 14 | 5 | 102 | 31 | |||||
| Rangers | 2021–22 | Scottish Premiership | 30 | 9 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 13 | 0 | — | 50 | 12 | ||
| 2022–23 | Scottish Premiership | 29 | 12 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 0 | — | 41 | 12 | |||
| Total | 59 | 21 | 8 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 18 | 0 | — | 91 | 24 | ||||
| Al-Fayha | 2023–24 | Saudi Pro League | 31 | 19 | 2 | 0 | — | 8 | 3 | — | 41 | 22 | |||
| Career total | 205 | 74 | 18 | 5 | 6 | 0 | 26 | 3 | 14 | 5 | 269 | 87 | |||
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Zambia | 2017 | 3 | 0 | |
| 2018 | 3 | 0 | ||
| 2019 | 3 | 1 | ||
| 2020 | 4 | 0 | ||
| 2021 | 4 | 5 | ||
| 2022 | 4 | 0 | ||
| 2023 | 7 | 3 | ||
| 2024 | 4 | 0 | ||
| Total | 32 | 9 | ||
Scores and results list Zambia's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Sakala goal.[22]
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 19 June 2019 | Zayed Sports City Stadium, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates | 1–0 | 1–4 | Friendly | ||
| 2 | 10 October 2021 | National Heroes Stadium, Lusaka, Zambia | 1–0 | 1–1 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification | ||
| 3 | 13 November 2021 | National Heroes Stadium, Lusaka, Zambia | 2–0 | 4–0 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification | ||
| 4 | 3–0 | ||||||
| 5 | 4–0 | ||||||
| 6 | 16 November 2021 | Stade Hammadi Agrebi, Tunis, Tunisia | 1–3 | 1–3 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification | ||
| 7 | 23 March 2023 | Levy Mwanawasa Stadium, Ndola, Zambia | 1–1 | 3–1 | 2023 Africa Cup of Nations qualification | ||
| 8 | 17 October 2023 | Al Hamriya Sports Club Stadium, Al Hamriyah, United Arab Emirates | 2–0 | 3–0 | Friendly | ||
| 9 | 17 November 2023 | Levy Mwanawasa Stadium, Ndola, Zambia | 3–2 | 4–2 | 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification |
Zanaco
Rangers
Zambia U20