Angolans hold Dynamos

PATHETIC!
Harare giants Dynamos made life difficult for themselves in their new campaign in the Confederation Cup when they put up a lifeless show at home to settle for a goalless draw against Interclube of Angola in the first leg of the group stage qualifiers at Rufaro yesterday.

 

Callisto Pasuwa’s men, who were relegated to the second tier competition after bowing out of the prestigious Champions League tournament, simply did not turn up for the game except for a few moments of individual efforts from striker Roderick Mutuma.

Instead it was Interclube who enjoyed their game, playing as a unit and controlling the flow of play to walk away with a deserved share of the spoils.

DeMbare were left with a huge task as they now need to go and force a scoring draw in Angola in two weeks time or to completely turn the tables and beat Interclube in their backyard to qualify for the mini league stage.

DeMbare were disjointed in all departments and, for a stranger, it was hard to believe they were the home team.

Interclube got the first clear chance but midfielder Nuno Neto’s strike was disallowed for offside in the 17th minute.

Dynamos’ Mutuma managed to keep the ball in play a minute later and squared for his strike partner Chinyama but the Orlando Pirates-bound man miscued his effort over the bar from close range.

Defender Guthrie Zhokinyi then sent his freekick wide in the 39th minute when Kailunda Joao was found guilty of tagging goalbound striker Chinyama.

Interclube came close in the 55th minute when goalkeeper Washington Arubi spilled a low shot from a setpiece by Antonio Justo and David Kutyauripo reacted fast to avert the danger.

It was not until midway through the second half that DeMbare appeared to have rediscovered their formation and created a few chances.

Chinyama cracked a powerful shot but it came off the head of defender Fabricio Mafuta. And Zambian Kaseloki who had a commendable performance in the second half sent his effort wide a minute later.

Action shifted to the other end of goal and DeMbare were fortunate enough when Joao Barros’ header from a corner kick was scrambled out from the line.

The draw was a bitter pill to swallow for the multitudes of the DeMbare fans who appeared discontented by their team’s poor showing.

Dynamos committee member Nyika Chifamba was nearly manhandled by some rowdy fans who accused him and club secretary Simon Sachiti of using juju to bewitch the team.

“This is a setback for us. Maybe we have to go there and fight hard in the return leg to get a result,” said Pasuwa.

“I am not happy at all with our performance. Instead of passing the ball well, we were just pumping upfront and we gave them too much room to play through the wings. But we were better in the second half,” said Pasuwa.

Interclube coach Bernadino Pedroto was happy with the draw and is now looking forward to the return leg.

“I was happy with the performance of my team and being the first leg we played, it’s still game on. When we face         Dynamos in the second leg, I would have worked on our weakness and I now know Dynamos’ type of play and their key players.

“I felt we were unlucky not to score and I was surprised by the match officials when they disallowed our goal and I believe it was the turning point and Dynamos survived,” said Pedroto.