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Ricky Zililo Senior Sports Reporter
THE Zifa board yesterday gave Warriors coach Ian Gorowa the nod to lead the senior national soccer team’s 2015 Africa Cup of Nations campaign. The Warriors have been drawn to face Tanzania in the first round of the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations to be staged in Morocco. Gorowa is expected to name his squad that will face Tanzania in the first leg of the first round crucial qualifiers away on the weekend of May 16-18 with the second leg set for Harare in a fortnight.
Should they sail past Tanzania, the Warriors will face the winner between Mozambique and South Sudan in the second round set for July. In the event that Zimbabwe clears the qualifying round stages, they will proceed to join Group F which has 2012 Africa Cup of Nations winners Zambia, Cape Verde and Niger.
The group stages will be played between September and November with the winners and runners-up of each group making it to next year’s finals in Morocco.
Gorowa, who led the Warriors to a fairytale run at the African Nations Championship (Chan) finals in South Africa where they lost in the semi-finals, is expected to make a few changes to his technical set up.
Zifa trust that Gorowa will join the elite league of coaches who led Zimbabwe to the Afcon tournament. Sunday Chidzambwa led the Warriors to their inaugural Afcon in 2004 followed by Charles Mhlauri in 2006.
Speaking on behalf of Zifa president Cuthbert Dube yesterday, the association’s vice-president Omega Sibanda confirmed the development.
“The Zifa board has retained Ian Gorowa as the senior national team coach with his first assignment being the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against Tanzania. There are a few minor issues that the team assigned to deal with the Gorowa matter is ironing out with the coach but we expect everything to be done soon so that he (Gorowa) starts preparing for the Tanzania game.
“There are going to be a few changes within the national team technical set up and it is coach Gorowa who will announce the changes. The changes are not meant to destabilise the technical set up but they are meant to strengthen that division as we go for this crucial stage of the qualifiers. As the Zifa board, we fully support Gorowa as we embark on this journey to make sure that Zimbabwe makes it to the continental showpiece. If we all work together as Zimbabweans that is from fans, corporate world, players, technical staff and the board, it is our belief that we will succeed to make it to the Afcon finals in Morocco,” said Sibanda.
Dynamos coach Callisto Pasuwa and Mkhuphali Masuku assisted Gorowa at the Chan finals with Richard Tswatswa and Gift Muzadzi being goalkeepers’ coaches while Sharrif Mussa is the team manager.
Meanwhile, Sibanda said Warriors supporters who want to travel to Tanzania for the first leg should get in touch with the head office in Harare.
“Supporters play an integral part in motivating players and those interested in travelling should contact our head office who are dealing with the logistics,” he said.
Online Reporter