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Eddie Chikamhi Senior Sports Reporter
IT’S been a remarkable journey, which started with winning a soccer ball in a Coca Cola raffle promotion, and kicking plates at home, in the beautiful chaos of his football-crazy youth.
This week, after having already seen him play in three continents, including fulfilling his American Dream, Teenage Hadebe now turns his focus to trying to qualify for the 2022 World Cup finals, in Qatar.
That will certainly bring his adventure full circle — the kid who started by winning a football, in a Coca Cola raffle, now playing at the game’s biggest showcase.
He turned 26 last month and the quest for a place in Qatar will not be the last, of his football dance with his Warriors, with a crack at the 2026 World Cup still a possibility.
With that tournament set for the United States, who will host it together with Canada and Mexico, it will be the perfect script for Hadebe, who found a move to play his football in America, in July this year, to be an attractive choice.
‘‘The road to @FIFAWorldCup 2022 continues, good luck to our guys heading off on international duty this week,’’ his Major League Soccer club, Houston Dynamo, said on their Twitter account.
‘‘Four Houston Dynamo FC players were named to the rosters of their respective national teams, for the upcoming window of 2022 World Cup Qualifier matches. The upcoming FIFA international window runs from Oct. 4 through Oct. 13 and all four players will return prior to Houston’s match against Seattle Sounders FC, at BBVA Stadium, on Oct. 16.
‘‘Defender Teenage Hadebe was named to the Zimbabwean national team for a pair of AFCON World Cup qualifying matches against Ghana on Oct. 9 and Oct. 12.’’ The steely centreback continues to pay a lot of tribute to his late mother, Selinah Ndlovu, whose blessings, he claims, keep opening doors for him.
“When I was young, there was a football competition in which you had to buy a bottle of Coca Cola,’’ he told a radio station in Houston, Texas, where he is now based.
‘‘Then, my mother bought me one bottle of Coca Cola. When you opened the bottle top, and scratched, there was a number underneath.
‘‘Then, we sent that number to the competition and on the day when the raffle was conducted, they picked my name, and they announced it on television that ‘Teenage Hadebe, you have won a soccer ball.’
“So, I am sure, that’s when it all started.
‘‘I won a soccer ball, my mother told me that I’m not surprised that you are going to make it, in future, because I used to like football, since I was young.
“I was kicking everything at home, I would kick plastics, even when I came across plates, I was also kicking the plates. That’s what they told me when I was young.’’
Hadebe started his football career at a young age, with Bantu Rovers, in Bulawayo.
The defender was in the same stream with his fellow Warriors Kuda Mahachi and Marvelous Nakamba-.
“I have been here before, in Dallas,’’ he said. ‘‘I played Dallas Cup in 2012. That time I was young. I am sure I was the youngest player in our team.
‘‘I enjoyed the experience because when you play in these kind of Cup games you meet different people.
“We were divided into two groups, and those groups were staying with different families. I really enjoyed that experience, I just told myself that one day, in future, I wish to come back to America and I thank God my dream came true.”
Hadebe played the 2012 and 2013 seasons with Bantu, in Division One, and featured for Highlanders and Chicken Inn before leaving the country.
“I only played a few years in Zimbabwe because I was always getting better contract offers,’’ he said. ‘’In football, you have to upgrade.
‘‘I am sure every footballer dreams of playing for a big team in his country or anywhere else.
“I played for three different teams in Zimbabwe and then I was signed by Kaizer Chiefs. That’s when I started enjoying my career. I started buying everything for my parents, because I was getting better money.’’
Hadebe moved to Turkey, after signing for Yeni Malatyaspor, before his move to the United States.
“To be honest, when the season finished in South Africa, there was the Africa Cup of Nations the following month,’’ he said.
‘‘I told some of my teammates (at Chiefs) that if I play in AFCON, you won’t see me here again.
“Some of the guys dismissed it as a joke but I had that feeling that I will fulfil my dream, to play in Europe, and it happened. I had a good tournament and I had different agents sending me messages on Instagram, saying would you want to play in Europe?
‘‘I weighed the offers and the Turkey deal was the best option then.”
Initially, he struggled with the diet in Turkey, and had to survive mostly on potatoes while language was also a huge barrier for him, and his family.
“Before Dynamo, my agent contacted me and said are you willing to play in America and I said just give me some time. If better offers come, I can accept because America is a good country,’’ he said.
“My family can live permanently here, my children can go to good schools, unlike in Turkey, where they cannot speak English.
“The way they (Houston officials) talked to me, I understood everything. As a player, sometimes it’s good to feel important. They showed how much they were interested in me and I had to sit down with my family, to talk about this move.’’
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