Chronicle Editor
Innocent Kurira, Sports Reporter
THIS could go down in history books as the most subdued Afcon finals qualification ever for Zimbabwe.
The wild celebrations in Malawi following their qualification for the finals in Cameroon next year stands as a sharp contrast to the reaction of the Warriors’ qualification.
Malawi sealed the second remaining spot from Group B, beating Uganda by a solitary goal at the Kamuzu Stadium in Blantyre on Monday to qualify for their first Afcon since 2010.
Social media has been abuzz with visuals of the Malawians celebrating their second Afcon berth.
After the game that took them to the finals, thousands flocked onto the streets to celebrate the feat and it has been positive vibes since then.
For Zimbabwe, this was their third consecutive qualification for the Afcon and out of the five qualifications Zimbabwe has attained, this seemed to have been the easiest as they did it with a game to spare.
With this qualification coming with the breaking of a number of records you would expect fans to be ecstatic, but that has not been the case.
Could it be a case of Zimbabweans warming up to the idea of not celebrating qualification, but instead wanting the team to do more at Afcon?
Over the years, the country has taken pride in qualifying for competitions at any level, only to perform dismally.
Even Zifa president Felton Kamambo’s congratulatory message indicated that something had to happen after four unimpressive appearances at Afcon.
There appears to be little faith that the Warriors can achieve this with Zdravko Logarušic as head coach.
Zimbabwe’s qualification has largely been overshadowed by questions around Loga’s capabilities.
He might have been the first foreign coach to take the Warriors to Afcon, but that has not spared him huge criticism from a section of fans that feel he is not good enough.
Out of eight matches that he has been in charge of the Warriors, the Croat only boasts one win; the 1-0 victory over Botswana in Francistown on March 25 that ensured they crossed the qualifying line.
The recent loss to Zambia in a dead rubber tie has not helped the Croat, whose experimental line-up was put to the sword by Chipolopolo, who dominated the Warriors tactically on Monday.
The Chan disaster is still fresh in the memories of many and it has not worked in his favour.
He lost all of their three group games and a section of fans have not forgiven him for that embarrassment.
The move to shut the door on some players that have not honoured previous call-ups has been met with mixed reactions and also has the possibility of dividing the dressing room if not properly addressed.
The last thing Loga needs is to have a divided dressing room.
With the World Cup qualfiers around the corner, it remains to be seen if Loga will be able to silence his critics and write a piece of history with the Warriors. — @innocentskizoe
Online Reporter