adminThen, just like now, we are a year from a World Cup show that will be played on the other side of the Atlantic and 20 years after gathering in the United State, the global football family will now meet in Brazil in 2014.
Brazil provides the common denominator in all this and, having won the World Cup in ’94, they are now going to be the hosts of the World Cup.
The Nations Cup finals will not be held next year, after a change of calendar by Caf but – just as was the case when the World Cup was held in ’94 – the champions of African football will be the Super Eagles of Nigeria when the 2014 World Cup show is held.
Incredibly, just like in ’94, Zambia provides the common denominator as the Super Eagles beat Chipolopolo to be African champions ahead of the World Cup in ’94, while this year the Nigerians dethroned the Zambians as African champions ahead of the World Cup in 2014.
Back in ’93, the first season of the era of the modern domestic Premiership, Highlanders were crowned champions, winning the last championship that gave two points to the winner, by five clear points ahead of CAPS United.
Twenty years later, as the events of ’93 seemingly play themselves out before our eyes, the Bulawayo giants are in prime position to be champions again, enjoying a four-point cushion over rivals Dynamos and with a lot of big games, in the second round, set to be played in home comforts at Barbourfields.
Back in ’93 we had a German coach, the immortal Reinhard Fabisch, whose Dream Team united the nation, turned the Warriors into box-office attractions, for the first time since the glory days of ’85 when Mick Poole and his men had won the Cecafa Cup, and made all of us believe that we were as good, if not better, than the Pharaohs and the Indomitable Lions.
Given the way history is playing itself out and some of the events of ’93 are being replayed 20 years later, it’s not a surprise really that we also have a German coach, in charge of the Warriors, Klaus Dieter Pagels in 2013.
That Egypt would provide the entrance point for Fabisch into his dance with our national teams, after the Land of the Pharaohs hosted the ’91 All-Africa Games where Reinhard coached the Young Warriors, and also provide the starting point for Pagels in his Warriors’ revolution, two decades later, is both as interesting as it could be prophetic.
And, lest we forget, this year also marks the 10th anniversary of that iconic moment when the Warriors, under Fabisch’s Dream Team assistant coach and protégé Sunday Chidzambwa, finally ended 23 years of trying, and repeatedly failing, to qualify for the Nations Cup finals.
Pagels, Fabisch and the Egyptian connection
Pagels’ first official assignment, that World Cup qualifier in Egypt, ended in a heart-breaking 1-2 defeat for the Warriors, the same margin of loss that Fabisch and his Dream Team suffered at the hands of the Pharaohs, in a World Cup tie, exactly 20 years ago on February 25, ’93.
Fabisch’s loss was nullified, leading to that replay, Pagels’ loss wasn’t but, the way his Warriors played, stamped their authority, produced their natural game, passed the ball around and scored a spectacular goal, all helped to win him as many hearts as those that fell for his Fabisch as missiles rained in Cairo.
After the chaos of the last campaign, where the Warriors’ play was long on disorganisation and short on shape, the tiki-taka of Pagels in Alexandria warmed the hearts and cheered the spirits.
Refreshingly, there was a rhythm to which the Warriors played their football, short passes sprayed all over the pitch, and while we knew it was impossible for everything to click, given that these are the formative years of the revolution, the shape that we saw in the short-term gave us reason to believe that there will be hope in the long-term.
Against Angola, in the final battle for the 2013 Nations Cup finals, the Warriors conceded two early goals and switched off, overwhelmed by the rapid response of their hosts and intimidated by the magnitude of the workload needed, in enemy territory, to fight back.
The last 80 minutes of that game became a no-show, for the Warriors, even though there was that dangled carrot that a goal would have changed everything, and they limped from one meaningless move to another, from one uncoordinated attack to another and, all the time, losing crucial minutes in the promise that time provided.
In sharp contrast, Pagels and his men held on for an hour in Alexandria, before Washington Arubi was beaten by a perfect free-kick by Hosni Abd-Rabou.
But where the Warriors had been bullied to find refugee in their shell, where they hid for 80 minutes doing absolutely nothing in Luanda but tormenting our emotions and waiting for the game to end and their failure to be confirmed, Pagels and his men refused to be pushed in Alexandria, playing against a better team than Angola, even after they went down.
Instead, they battled their way back and were rewarded, 15 minutes later, when Knowledge Musona, timed his run well, shrugged off his marker and then unleashed a volley, of pure quality and good enough to earn a standing ovation at any football arena in the world, Old Trafford and the Camp Nou included, for the equaliser.
Although we lost, succumbing to an 88th minute penalty, Pagels and his Warriors left Alexandria with their heads held high and, just like Fabisch in ’91 when his quest for gold with the Young Warriors in Egypt had ended in a third place play-off defeat, what mattered wasn’t the pain inflicted by the failed mission, but the hope that the future promised.
Fabisch did not build his team on a tiki-taka platform, there was no romantic expression to the way his men played their football, to describe it as beautiful would have been an insult to the word ugly but, boy oh boy, the system was effective, brutally functional.
The punishing defence was a rearguard that could be trusted, the tigerish midfield took no prisoners and that strikeforce usually struck when it mattered most.
Some will say, with considerable justification, that Fabisch was a lucky fellow, he came here when the cream of our players was reaching the peak of its athletic powers and he had dozens of men who were very good, from where to draw his troops, a privilege that other coaches haven’t been afforded.
But he built his team, and no one can question that, and found a way to get the best out of his men and in a golden period he taught us how to beat the Pharaohs here, forced them to use dirty tactics to distract us in Cairo, which was a confirmation they had accepted we were quite a formidable side, and on a level playing field in Lyon, they could not beat us.
Pagels doesn’t have a Peter Ndlovu or an Agent Sawu but he has a group of footballers who, if they can see the direction their coach is taking and can grasp his teachings from his manual for them to play it as basic as possible – receive the ball, pass it, move, create space, support the man on the ball – then they could turn themselves into box-office attractions with the local fans.
Under pressure in Alexandria, where a defeat meant the end of their World Cup road, the Warriors responded well and, now that they are not under any pressure, they should be able to express themselves freely and passing the Pharaohs’ test is important because it brings in the confidence that they need going forward.
Pagels isn’t as colourful as Fabisch but what he lacks in colour, he appears to make up for that in substance and, gradually, he is giving shape to his project and what he clearly needs is time, a bit of patience from the home fans, and step by step, brick by brick, he could build a competitive team that, unlike the Dream Team, could even qualify for the next Nations Cup finals.
Fabisch wouldn’t have done half the things he did without the nation giving his Dream Team project unconditional support and it’s something that Pagels and his men badly need, in their first World Cup home assignment together, and you never know where this bond of unity will take us because, 20 years ago, it almost took us to the World Cup.
Pagels and Katsande has a touch of ‘93
There has been considerable pressure exerted on Pagels to consider Willard Katsande, after the midfielder’s grand performance for Kaizer Chiefs, and it’s difficult to understand, from a layman’s view, why our best performing player in Super Diski should be out and a lot of others, including some who can’t even command a regular jersey in their teams, are in the Warriors’ squad.
Katsande doesn’t play for a Mickey Mouse football club, like Black Leopards, Chippa United or Thanda Royal whatever, but for the biggest team in South Africa where the pressure is relentless, in every game, and for him to do as well as he did in the just-ended season, is a credit to both his remarkable talent and big heart.
When you are asked to fill the shoes of a legend like Tinashe Nengomasha, at a club like the Amakhosi, and you don’t just do that but shine brightly, and play a huge part in helping to deliver the club’s first league title in eight years, you certainly can’t be just another ordinary footballer.
It’s easy to feel for Katsande, especially when one considers that while the hardman hasn’t only nailed a first team place at Chiefs, and made a huge impact, two of his teammates, Lincoln Zvasiya and Matthew Rusike, who can’t be guaranteed a run in that Amakhosi team, are in the national team.
Stuart Baxter, who guided Chiefs to a League and Cup double, considers Katsande the best holding midfielder in the South African Premiership, which means in the eyes of the English coach, he is better than Reneilwe Letsholonyane, his clubmate.
And, given that Letsholonyane is in the Bafana Bafana team, Willard, using his club coach’s assessment, would walk into the Bafana team.
It’s certainly hard to understand how such a player would be deemed not good enough for a squad call, let’s leave even making the final 18 for a moment, in a team with just one point, after three games of the 2014 World Cup qualifiers, which gives it a better position than just one other team, Cape Verde, among the 40 African nations competing.
We are 39th, out of the 40 teams, right now with just a point and share that position with Botswana, Gambia, Cape Verde, Sudan, Rwanda and Togo.
But, for some of us who walked with the Warriors 20 years ago, the Katsande question is not a new one and reminds us of the intense pressure that was exerted on Fabisch, by both the fans and the media, to find a place for Moses Chunga in his Dream Team.
It was so relentless and Fabisch faced it every morning he opened the newspaper, heard the voices on radio and television every night before he retired to bed, and it grew louder and louder and the coach was forced, against his will, to bring in Bambo.
A special game had to be arranged, just to test Chunga’s fitness levels, at Rufaro and such was the massive interest, and the raging emotions, it attracted 25 000 fans and when Bambo’s night ended early, after breaking down injured having been shadowed by Rahman throughout, chaos broke out.
Rahman was deemed the fall guy, and some crazy fans decided to attack him in a disgraceful act, accusing him of playing a big part in the breakdown of their idol while assistant national team coach, Roy Barreto, was also manhandled after being accused of influencing Fabisch to ignore Bambo.
Fabisch’s reaction was that he would never take his Dream Team to Rufaro again and, though he was very critical of Chunga that day, he warmed up to him and called him back to the national team ahead of the World Cup qualifier against Guinea only to drop him from his final squad.
And, when Chunga was drafted back into the Dream Team, ahead of the trip to the final World Cup qualifier against Cameroon and then asked to report for training sessions from home, he snapped and walked out on Fabisch and his troops.
“I don’t think I deserve to be tossed around like a kid,” Chunga told The Herald. “If Fabisch doesn’t want me in his team, he should say so. If one is pushed too far, he finally cracks.”
Chunga wasn’t the only one.
Dynamos skipper, Memory Mucherahowa, was the other player who walked out on the Dream Team, ahead of the trip to Cameroon, saying he was fed up with being ignored, when it came to the final squad, by Fabisch.
“I personally believe that I deserve to be a permanent member of the national team but, if the coach thinks otherwise, what can you do?” said Mucherahowa.
A year later, Mucherahowa was crowned Soccer Star of the Year, after leading his club to the league title, but Mwendamberi didn’t appeal to Fabisch, the same way Chunga didn’t, but the German coach still built a very successful project.
So, 20 years down the line, we should draw lessons from our history and give the national team coach the freedom to hunt with the dogs that react to his orders best and which run in a particular fashion that brightens the chance of capturing prey.
Katsande is a good player, no doubt about that, but maybe Pagels doesn’t see a future in him, say two or three years from now, doesn’t believe the same player will be making the same impact when the 2015 Nations Cup qualifiers get underway even though he only turns 28 on January 15 next year.
There are some who are saying it doesn’t make sense for Pagels to invest all his trust in a player like Denver Mukamba, who has struggled to make an immediate impression and break into the first team at BidVest Wits, while it the same time ignoring Katsande who is flourishing at a big club like Chiefs.
That it doesn’t make sense for Pagels to call Simba Sithole, still with no goals at SuperSport and weighed down by injuries, to call Rodreck Mutuma, still with no goals and limited appearances at Bloemfontein Celtic, to call Tafadzwa Rusike, who has just been offloaded by Ajax Cape Town, while at the same time ignoring Katsande.
Fair and fine!
But Botswana coach Stanley Tshoane made history, in the qualifying campaign for the 2012 Nations Cup finals, when he became the first gaffer to take the Zebras to the festival.
Interestingly, Tshoane could not have enjoyed such success if he had listened to the experts or, like Pagels, he had not trusted his instincts.
The hero of the Zebras’ campaign was striker Jerome Ramatlhakwane, who was clubless, after falling victim to a dispute between South African clubs Vasco da Gama and Santos.
Ramatlhakwane didn’t kick a ball, for a club, for almost two years but still Tshoane believed in him, against conventional wisdom that supported the investment in players playing regularly and doing well, and he paid him back with the winner in Tunis in a shock 1-0 victory over Tunisia, the winner in Blantyre in a big 1-0 win over Malawi, the winner in Chad in a 1-0 win and a goal in the 2-1 home win over the Tunisians.
And, of course, Ramatlhakwane also scored in the 1-1 draw for Botswana in their friendly international against Egypt on Tuesday in Cairo.
Samaita, Denver and the North Africans
Now that the Egyptians are here, for a match against a Warriors’ battalion led by Denver Mukamba, one only hopes the skipper, and his troops, can draw inspiration from events in Harare, two years ago, when a certain Algerian team was destroyed to end this myth about the invincibility of North African opposition.
That Denver, the standout player in that 4-1 destruction of MC Alger by Dynamos, is the captain of these Warriors, at a time when drawing inspiration from that outstanding team performance could produce miracles for us, is intriguing.
Denver isn’t the only link.
Lloyd Mutasa was the technical architect of that incredible performance that, just like Pagels’ revolution, was based on tiki-taka, and he will be in the trenches tomorrow as the German coach’s lieutenant.
Arubi was the DeMbare ‘keeper that day and, after an outstanding performance in Cairo, he makes his homecoming show, from a brief period on the sidelines, in a World Cup match.
Devon Chafa did not receive as much credit, as he probably deserved, after an excellent performance that afternoon and, having lost his way after scaling those heights, he has found the light to be one of the best players on the domestic scene, and was part of the Warriors as they prepared for Egypt.
Rodreck Mutuma even scored a goal in that match and was part of the Warriors all week while Guthrie Zhokinyi, a pillar of strength that afternoon at the back, would certainly have made this squad had it not been for his ban.
These boys did it, one fine afternoon, and the Warriors can do it, too, tomorrow and I have this good feeling Pagels’ revolution could get a home blessing, which a victory brings, against the Pharaohs.
For 21 years we have waited for a World Cup victory against these men and this could be the hour.
To God Be The Glory!
Come on Warriors!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Musonaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!
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