admin
THERE was a bit of disappointment among local football fans this week, after the Confederation of African Football decided to postpone the 2022 World Cup qualifiers, which were set for next month.
We can understand why because since the draw for the group stages of these qualifiers was made, and the fixtures released, many fans have been counting down to our blockbuster battle against South Africa.
The showdown against Bafana Bafana, dubbed the Battle of the Limpopo, is one of the biggest fixtures on the international football calendar for us for obvious reasons.
It’s a derby and such matches tend to bring the best out of the contestants, because of the huge bragging rights at stake.
That’s why, for many local fans, our 4-1 destruction of Bafana Bafana, in the early days of their return to international football, at the National Sports Stadium in 1992, remains one of their enduring highlights.
Neither have many of our fans forgotten the tragedy which unfolded at the giant stadium, ironically in a World Cup match against the South Africans, in 2000.
Ironically, it remains the last time we played Bafana Bafana in a World Cup qualifier.
Because of the sporting rivalry, between the two sisterly countries, Bafana Bafana’s failure to qualify for the next AFCON finals, is something which delights the local football fans, who find themselves bragging that their Warriors are the region’s top dogs.
That Chipolopolo, who are our big rivals, when it comes to football, also failed to qualify for the next Nations Cup finals has been providing boundless joy to the Warriors fans.
It’s just the way it is, with football, even though our three brotherly countries remain very close, on the diplomatic front, with their ties even getting stronger, by the day.
The disappointment, among the local fans that their Warriors will not be able to take on Bafana Bafana early next month, following the postponement of the qualifiers, is understandable.
There is a feeling, among the local supporters the South Africans were probably at their weakest right now as they were still trying to deal with the disappointment of their failure, to make the next AFCON finals.
The second big reason might come from the impression, among the local fans, Bafana Bafana, who this week appointed a new head coach, Hugo Broos, would not have grasped the direction which their new gaffer want them to take if they had taken the Warriors on June 5.
This is something which the local supporters believe would have worked, in favour of their team, had the World Cup qualifier go ahead, as scheduled, in the first week of next month.
However, as football has demonstrated again and again, it is a very unpredictable game.
Which is the reason why we believe the postponement of the World Cup fixtures might not be something which puts us in a disadvantage, as some have been claiming, since CAF announced on Thursday that the matches have now been moved to September.
It’s easy to forget that the June qualifiers, themselves, are not easy assignments, especially for the majority of the players who would have spent the season battling, in the trenches of football, in the tough European leagues.
After a lengthy campaign, taking on some of the best players in the world, many of the players would be badly in need of a break, to recharge their batteries, rather than being plunged into more tough battles, across the continent.
Many of our key players, like our skipper Knowledge Musona, striker Tino Kadewere, midfielder Marshall Munetsi and defenders, Teenage Hadebe and Tendayi Darikwa, are either coming off, or about to come off, what has been a lengthy and tough season for them.
It’s easy to forget that virtually all of them didn’t enjoy a proper off-season, between the end of the 2019/2020 season and the start of the 2020/2021 season, after the challenges that came with the Covid-19 pandemic.
This probably explains why many of our stars have struggled with injuries and, had the World Cup qualifiers gone ahead as scheduled next month, with two tough matches within a short time frame, we might not have derived the best out of them.
If they now get about an entire month to rest, as should now be the case, after the postponement of next month’s matches, and then get a proper pre-season with their clubs, there is no doubt that they will be in a better physical shape to play to their best levels when they wear our shirt in September.
Already, there was concern Khama Billiat, who has been one of our most influential players in the past decade, was unlikely to be fit for the matches against Bafana Bafana and Ethiopia, had they been played next month.
Now, with the window of recovery, for him, extended all the way to September, there is a very good chance that he will have fully recovered, to provide the X-Factor, which he has always given to the Warriors.
Then, there is also the issue of stadiums, which would have seen some countries being forced to play their home matches at neutral venues, because their grounds have not been cleared by CAF.
This would not have provided a level playing field and, given this is a pursuit for places at the World Cup qualifiers, where every country should be given a fair chance to take part, such a scenario would have compromised the integrity of the tournament.
And, in this environment, where Covid-19 remains a challenge, it’s very unlikely that there would have been many countries, willing to host two other nations, playing on neutral soil, in these qualifiers.
Online Reporter