Serie A star missing for 4 weeks suddenly appears at another club

Lecce is facing a rare situation as Lameck Banda has not returned to the squad and has virtually cut off contact with the team for weeks. The story becomes even more unbelievable when the Zambia international is reportedly seen at a Libyan club despite still being under contract in Serie A.

Lecce unable to contact Banda

The future of Lameck Banda at Lecce is becoming one of the strangest stories in the transfer market of Serie A summer 2026.

After the summer break, the Zambian winger did not return to Italy to take part in the preparations for the new season. Banda missed the medical checks as well as Lecce's pre-season training camp in Austria.

On July 21, Lecce had to issue an official statement confirming that Banda could not return yet due to issues described by the player as related to logistics and administrative procedures. The Serie A club also announced it would verify the reasons given and left open the possibility of taking disciplinary measures to ensure contractual obligations.

However, the situation showed no signs of being resolved. According to La Gazzetta dello Sport, Lecce received no response from Banda for weeks. The club also struggled to determine the exact plans of the 25-year-old player.

Suddenly appears with Libyan club

The story took a completely new turn when Libyan media reported that Banda was seen with representatives of Al Swehli SC, a club preparing for its campaign in African competitions.

According to Football Italia, the Zambia international was reportedly seen at Al Swehli's training camp in Cairo, Egypt. The Libyan club is even said to be preparing a two-year contract for the player under contract with Lecce.

This detail immediately prompted Lecce to act because Banda, legally, is still a player of the Italian club.

In June 2026, Lecce officially activated the one-year extension clause in Banda's contract, thereby keeping the winger until June 30, 2027. The Serie A club publicly announced the extension on its website.

Notably, Al Swehli is said to have previously sent an offer of less than €1 million to buy Banda, but it was rejected by Lecce. Therefore, the news that the player later appeared with the Libyan club only made the situation more tense.

Lecce takes the matter to FIFA

Fearing that Banda could reach an agreement with another club while his current contract is still valid, Lecce decided to escalate the matter to a higher level.

According to Italian media, Lecce sent notifications to FIFA, the Zambia Football Federation, the Libyan Football Federation, and relevant parties, emphasizing the current contract status of Banda.

The player's side, however, is said to disagree with the way Lecce activated the extension clause. Reports emerging in Italy indicate that Banda believes he did not fully understand the clause allowing Lecce to unilaterally extend the contract for an additional season when he signed the original deal.

Nevertheless, Lecce's official records show that from the moment Banda joined the club in 2022, the agreement had a four-year term with an option to extend for one more year.

Banda joined Lecce from Maccabi Petah Tikva in 2022 and became the first Zambian player to play in Serie A. Now, instead of preparing for the new season with his parent club, the 2001-born player has become the center of a particularly complex contract dispute.

If the parties cannot find common ground, FIFA may become the one to decide the next chapter in this case that has stirred up Italian football.