dyton mupawaenda
Bruce Chikuni, Sports Reporter
FORMER Warriors captain and Kaizer Chiefs legend, Willard Katsande feels Tino Kadewere is being played out of position in the national team, limiting his true potential.
He even labelled Kadewere as the most tactical player in the current Warriors squad.
Kadewere will mark a decade in Europe next year.
Lately, he has been held accountable for the Warriors’ misfortune which has seen the country being reduced to a punching bag with countries like Malawi, Kenya and Lesotho.
His critics have been accusing him of driving slow in the fast lane condemning his regular inclusion in the Warriors squad.
Kadewere’s European journey began in Sweden with Djurgardens, where he played as an attacking midfielder, scoring 13 goals in 42 fixtures.
During his stay at the club, Aquilo Badji and Yura Movsisyan were the main strikers at the team.
His decent contributions caught the attention of Le Havre, where he registered 23 goals in 43 appearances, despite not being the chief hitman.
That role was reserved for Yann Karamoh and Alexandre Bonnet but he managed to earn rave reviews which made him one of the most wanted players in France.
Olympique Lyon was his next and he was mostly deployed as a winger or second striker, but he scored 11 times, including a memorable goal against PSG.
Former Manchester United forward, Memphis Depay, Moussa Dembele and Toko Ekambi were the Lyon’s main strikers and Kadewere would complement this offensive unit as a second striker and sometimes as a winger.
Katsande argues that Kadewere’s profile qualifies him to be the Warriors’ playmaker, not a goal-scorer.
“I really feel for Kadewere because he is being underutilised in the current Warriors team. I don’t think we have anyone who is creative enough to provide chances for him and it’s wrong to play Kadewere as an outright striker because he gives you more in the creative zone.
“I have never seen him playing as a main striker in Europe but the only time which I have seen him playing in that position is where he plays as a false-number nine.
“I once played with him in the national team when he was still young and by now, he is the player we but be asking to create scoring chances not the other way round,” said Katsande.
Katsande also argued that the Warriors should be built around Kadewere.
“He is now a senior player and is someone who was born and raised in Zimbabwe which means he understands what it means to play for the badge. I don’t know if the previous coaches have been communicating with these players to get what an idea of what players also want. Football has changed, we are now in the days where if a coach doesn’t talk to the player, he gets nothing on the field.
“Where Kadewere plays, they have made him their key man when in possession of the ball and that should be embraced to some extent in the national team to make him more involved if we do care about his contributions.
“The coach needs to have him for a purpose not just of the sake of making him feel appreciated,” he said.
Online Reporter