adminreturned to the bench last weekend but for an away tie against How Mine and his presence was immediately felt by his players who turned their game around after a depressing defeat in their last match against Buffaloes.
The CAPS United gaffer had been banished from the game as he served a 10-year ban for his alleged role in the Asiagate scandal.
The punishment was, however, reduced to a wholly suspended one-year sanction on appeal.
Mangwiro received a lot of support from the CAPS United family who paid his US$6 000 appeal feel when the then club vice-president, Farai Jere, decided it was worth taking the gamble and investing in his appeal.
The Green Machine fans also rallied behind their coach and he is set to receive a standing ovation when he walls into Gwanzura this afternoon.
“I would like to pay tribute to my colleagues Baba Gari (Brenna Msiska), even Mkhupali Masuku, and the rest of the technical team. They have done a decent job in assembling a competitive side,” Mangwiro told The Herald.
“There is unity and if you look at the players during training you can actually see that we are one happy family. But it would now need positive results for us to cement that, so that we may remain a united front.
“This year our priority is to bring back stability to the club. If you can look back, you will see that it has been several years now since CAPS United launched a formidable challenge. And for us to say we would want to win the championship outright I am sure we will be putting ourselves under pressure.
“Let’s look at our next five assignments and after that we will have a clear picture of what the season holds for us.”
He said they will take it set after step.
“Of course, it’s every coach’s dream to win the championship but a top four finish will be ideal for us. We don’t want to put ourselves under a lot of pressure. So far we seem to be heading in the right direction. To me it’s a decent start. Nine points out of a possible 15 is not a bad run,” said Mangwiro.
Makepekepe are coming from a victory at How Mine last week while John Ncube’s police outfit claimed the scalps of Monomotapa and Hwange in their last two games.
Both teams will miss two key players apiece as the Green Machine duo of Hardlife Zvirekwi and Tawanda Nyamandwe and Mambas’ Nicholas Alifandika and Last Chibwiro have travelled with the Warriors to Zambia.
Harare City will host How Mine at Rufaro this afternoon. Tomorrow Bulawayo giants Highlanders will be seeking to bounce back to winning ways after dropping four points in their last two outings against Motor Action and Dynamos.
Bosso, however, will be without their influential midfielder Masimba Mambare, who has been made captain of the locally based squad by Warriors coach Dieter Klaus Pagels for their Zambia trip.
While CAPS United are in a good position, things cannot get any better in the Dynamos camp as the Harare giants were yesterday praying for divine intervention to have their goalkeeper Artwell Mukandi regain fitness ahead of tomorrow’s tie against Tripple B at Mandava.
DeMbare’s fears were heightened yesterday when Mukandi was asked to take a rest mid-way through the morning practice session after complaining of pain in the shins, which coach Callisto Pasuwa described as a similar problem to the one that has kept midfield hardman Milton Makopa out of the game for some time now.
The Glamour Boys were yesterday hoping that it will not get worse as their other goalkeeper George Chigova is out serving his last match suspension after picking a red card in a league match against Triangle two weeks ago.
“We don’t know what the problem is yet but he said he is feeling some piercing pains and was limping so we thought we could rest him. The doctors are looking at him and we will have to hear from them. They will give the final say,” said Pasuwa.
DeMbare, however, have Young Warriors goalkeeper Tatenda Mukuruva waiting in the wings to step into the big boots as he is already in the provisional squad set to leave for Zvishavane today.
Defensive midfielder, Devon Chafa, and Augustine Mbara are not available as they are currently with the national team for the friendly match against Zambia set for tomorrow.
Pasuwa is worried the Dynamos injury list keeps growing and they will also have to do without their big striker Francisco Zekumbawira who is back on the sidelines with a hip injury while Ocean Mushure and Clive Kawinga are still down.
Patrick Khumbula started serious training on Wednesday after recovering from a knock he picked in their last match against Highlanders at Rufaro is expected to be available to bolster the attack.
DeMbare who have made a disappointing start in defence of their title are looking for their first win after drawing their first five games of the season.
They almost slumped to their first defeat last week against old foes Highlanders at home but they survived courtesy of an injury time equaliser from centreback Partson Jaure.
DeMbare have managed only four goals and Pasuwa made a plea to his strikers, who also include Washington Pakamisa, Farai Mupasiri and Allan Tavarwisa, to step up their act.
“The mood has been good and the guys have been scoring goals like nobody’s business during training but now I don’t know what happens when they get into the field. There might be a problem here or there of technique and the confidence in front of goal is lacking.
“So we have been trying to motivate them to remain focused. I am sure the goals will come. We have noticed that after getting into the scoring positions and missing one or two opportunities the next thing they do is to run away from the positions.
“The whole week we have been working on the finishing so that we can have that confidence to score goals.”
The coach is under pressure from the management to turn things around and winning this match could be a great relief.
Pasuwa however remains in good spirits despite the pressure and the accusations that some of his players are sabotaging him.
DeMbare received a timely boost this week when they secured Morris Kadzola’s licence, which makes him available for tomorrow’s match.
Kadzola has not been able to feature in the domestic league games because his previous club Motor Action were holding on to his clearance papers because of outstanding bills from a previous deal.
With both leftbacks Mushure and Mbara out, DeMbare will turn to Kadzola for cover.
Tripple B coach Friday Phiri said he is looking forward to the match with a positive mind after winning their last two games against Triangle and Shabanie Mine.
The Beitbridge side appears to have found the winning form as they had lost three opening games and Phiri wants to maintain the momentum.
The former national Under-23 coach, however, said he will not look much into DeMbare’s poor run of form.
“This is a crucial encounter because DeMbare are seasoned campaigners and at the same time the defending champions” said Phiri..
“For that reason it’s going to be a tough assignment taking into consideration that they have only drawn all their matches and are looking for a first win.
“But we are playing good football but we also realise that if you continue playing well without results it accounts for nothing. Last week we recorded our season win and we are hoping that the run continues.
“Morale is very high in the team from the supporters and technical department. We are expecting nothing less than a win again despite the fact that we are playing against the reigning champions.
“We have a good side but I think luck was not on our side in our previous games because we missed opportunities and conceded soft goals on many occasions. But the guys are now gaining confidence and they can’t wait to play Dynamos.”
The Premiership newcomers are hoping that their defensive linkman Edmore Chafungamoyo will be fully fit for this tie.
Phiri, however, is not losing sleep since former DeMbare man Timire Mamvura has been doing well in the holding role in Chafungamoyo’s absence.
It will be Mamvura’s first meeting with former paymasters since his acrimonious departure from the Harare giants at the beginning of the season.
Fixtures
Today: FC Platinum v Triangle (Mandava), CAPS United v Black Mambas (Gwanzura), Harare City v How Mine (Rufaro), Motor Action v Buffaloes (Motor Action Sports Club)
Tomorrow: Tripple B v Dynamos (Mandava), Monomotapa v Shabanie Mine (Rufaro), Highlanders v Black Rhinos (Barbourfields), Hwange v Chicken Inn (Colliery)
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