Come on DeMbare!

to Zimbabwean football, when they face MC Alger at the Stade 5 Julliet 1962 Stadium in a Champions League showdown tomorrow night.
The Glamour Boys plunge into a tricky battle just a week after the Warriors crashed in a 2012 Nations Cup qualifier in Mali and, just like in the first leg at Rufaro two weeks ago, the onus is on Dynamos to give the nation something to cheer its spirits.
Motor Action, the other Zimbabwean representative in the Champions League, are already out after losing a one-off first round tie against ASEC Mimosas on penalties.
The DeMbare/MC Alger match, which was supposed to take place tonight, was postponed by 24 hours and will now kick off at 7.30pm Algerian time (9.30pm local time).
Dynamos are sitting on a 4-1 advantage from the first leg victory at Rufaro two weeks ago courtesy of goals from Guthrie Zhokinyi, Rodrick Mutuma, Farayi Vimisayi and the irresistible Denver Mukamba.
The Algerians grabbed a crucial away goal through their captain Reda Babouche who converted from the spot late in the game.
But Dynamos have to put behind them the administrative boob that caused a delay in their departure plans.
The delegation had to leave behind six members – who included assistant coach Masimba Dinyero, head of delegation Austin Chishanga, club vice-chairman Kenny Mubaiwa and committee member Mike George, – who had to follow on a rescheduled flight yesterday.
There were also reports that three Dynamos players were left stranded in Addis Ababa since their boarding passes to connect to Paris could not be located.
Although the players looked drained by the setback shortly before their departure on Thursday, vice-captain George Magariro, one of the core members of the side, said the Glamour Boys were still high in spirits and were aiming for their hosts’ scalp to sail through to the next round in style.
DeMbare were expected to arrive yesterday and have time to rest and train at the match venue today. Magariro maintains that the team would not lose focus despite the setback they faced in the past week.
“We all have the feeling that we should get a good result and proceed to the next stage.
“The aim is to go there and win, so we will be attacking a lot but we must have a lot of mental discipline. “Obviously we are not going to defend en-masse,” he said.
Magariro, who was part of the squad that toured that part of the country to face Entente Setif in the group stages last year, warned of the North Africans’ fighting spirit and encouraged his teammates to tread carefully in the match.
Dynamos were on the receiving end after going down to 3-0 to Setif in the reverse leg of the mini-league last season, just two weeks after dispatching the same opponents 1-0 at Rufaro.
It is against this background that Magariro feels the war is not won yet.
“We had some nasty experiences when we went there to play Setif but it taught us to be tough.
As a visiting team you should be prepared for all situations.
“We have even talked about it in the dressing room, because it’s very possible that some teams always want to frustrate the opposition as part of an orchestrated mental warfare.
“Everyone in the camp is ecstatic about the game and we received a real boost with the arrival of Denver and Archie.
“MC Alger are a good side and the threat of what they are capable of doing should not be ignored.

“We must play to win and I don’t think it will be right for us to go into the match with the mentality that we have a healthy 4-1 lead.
“This is a new game for us and we are putting the first leg results aside and try to concentrate on the new challenge.
“Football is an interesting game. If we could beat them by a big margin in our home leg, what can stop them from doing the same in front of their supporters at their backyard?” said Magariro.
Dynamos coach Lloyd Mutasa said his charges have managed to put behind them the disappointment of losing their first league match to lowly Kiglon last week.
Mutasa said he has faith in his team, which fared above expectations in the first leg, despite featuring several members playing for the first time at this big stage.
He indicated that there could be no changes to the side that featured in the first leg with goalkeeper Washington Arubi, Archieford Gutu, Mukamba and Guthrie Zhokinyi all back to take their places from national team duty last weekend.
Newboys Tawanda Muparati, Thomas Magorimbo and Devon Chafa also did well in the match and are set to be in the starting eleven.
He also defended his 4-5-1 formation, which he is also likely to employ tomorrow, with Gutu and Mukamba supporting lone striker Mutuma.
“Criticism will always be there on how the team is set and as long as it is positive we welcome it.
“But we have been using this formation with some success.
“We scored four goals against MC Alger and we have been winning using the same system during the off season preparations.
“If there is need to change we can always adjust, depending on the game situation.
“There are several factors which determine the formation to be used and at times if you feel the strikers are not doing enough, you always want to complement with a strong supply from the midfield,” said Mutasa.
The return of Gutu, who had a good game for the Warriors in Mali, into the Dynamos line-up should be a big boost for Mutasa and his men.
The midfielder missed the first leg because of a contractual dispute between Dynamos and his manager Calvin Nyazema, which has since been resolved.
Gutu now has inked a year’s deal with Dynamos.The midfielder with the boyish looks has been improving all the time and gained invaluable experience playing for the Warriors during the CHAN finals in Sudan.
His combination with another hotshot, Mukamba, could be the key as Dynamos look for a goal that could make it safe for them.MC Alger coach Nurredine Zekri should have done enough homework fro the initial encounter.
Zekri is not new to Dynamos after leading Setif against the side, then under Elvis Chiweshe, in the group stages last year.
Dynamos squad
W. Arubi, M. Nyamupangedengu, D.
Kutyauripo, D. Benati, T. Magorimbo, G.
Zhokinyi, G. Magariro, D. Maringwa, D. Chafa,
G. Bello, F. Vimisayi, A. Gutu, D. Mukamba, N.
Alifandika, M. Makopa, T. Muparati, R.
Mutuma, P. Khumbula