adminat MKO Abiola Stadium on Saturday.
The Young Mighty Warriors flew out of Harare yesterday morning via Johannesburg and connected in the afternoon and were expected to arrive in Lagos around 7pm.
The Zimbabwe delegation would then complete their Nigerian leg of the journey by undertaking a 100km road trip from Lagos to Abeokuta town.
Young Mighty Warriors protocol officer, Perpertua Gurajena, who travelled as the advance party, yesterday allayed fears that the team could receive a rough ride in Nigeria and said the West Africans had been hospitable to her since Monday.
“I have received excellent treatment from the hosts since my arrival in Abeoukuta on Monday evening.
“They have been going out of their way and have secured good accommodation facilities for the team.
“We will play on artificial turf and they have advised us that we can use the pitch for training purposes from the day the team will arrive up to match day.”
Gurajena said the hosts have been surprisingly nice and they have said they would expect Zifa to reciprocate when they travel to Harare for the return leg in two weeks’ time.
However, the Zimbabwe Women’s Football official warned that the delegation should brace themselves for harsh weather conditions as temperatures are soaring to 38 degrees in highly humid conditions.
She added that the hosts are bubbling with confidence following the qualification of the women’s soccer Under-17 side to the World Cup showpiece.
Nigeria beat Zambia 5-0 last weekend to qualify for the tournament.
Now the Falconets believe it is their turn to overcome Zimbabwe this weekend and move an inch closer to qualifying again for the August tournament, which will be held in Japan.
The Falconets have played in every World Cup, which is staged after every two years, since its inception in 2000.
In the last edition held in Germany in 2010, the Falconets reached the final and lost 2-0 to the hosts.
The West African women’s football powerhouse believe they have the capacity to go all the way and lift the trophy in Asia. The Nigerians have been a difficult opponent in their duels against Zimbabwe.
Zimbabwe vividly remember how their dream was shattered on the road to Germany two years ago when they lost 6-0 at Rufaro before going down again 2-0 in the return leg in Abuja.
Incumbent Langton Giwa was the team coach and the Mufakose Queens gaffer said shoddy preparations and lack of seriousness which was attached to women’s football at that time, under the previous executive, saw the team camping for only one week.
“If Nigeria approach us with that attitude then they will be surprised.
“We are prepared for them and this crop of players is awesome,” said Giwa, adding that they had prepared for the harsh weather conditions.
“We knew it would be hot and we had a camp in Hwange specifically for that.
“We are just confident ahead of this match and we hope we will arrive safely and manage to rest before we start training tomorrow (today).”
Online Reporter