Chronicle Editor
Sikhumbuzo Moyo, Acting Sports Editor
WARRIORS goalkeeper Elvis Chipezeze suffered a knee injury towards the end of the first half during a Caf African Nations Cup qualifier against Algeria in Algiers on a horror Thursday night.
He will need to undergo a scan to determine if he will be available for the Monday return leg.
The technical team is already in the process of looking for his replacement in the event he doesn’t recover on time.
Warriors team doctor, Xolani Ndlovu, speaking to Chronicle Sport yesterday, confirmed the injury to the former Chicken Inn goalie who is now on the books of Dstv Premiership side Baroka in South Africa.
“He suffered a knee injury after he collided with an Algerian striker towards the end of the first half. We will need to do a scan on him once we arrive home, most likely on Saturday (today) or Monday morning to ascertain the extent of the damage. We couldn’t do that here because he was in extreme pain so once we do a scan, we will then tell if the coaches can use him or not for the Monday encounter,” said Ndlovu.
The Warriors, who needed at least a share of the spoils against the Desert Foxes, were already 0-2 down through goals by Baghdad Bounedjah and Sofiane Feghouli when Chipezeze picked up the injury but held on until the halftime whistle. He was then replaced by former Chapungu goalkeeper who is now with Nkana of Zambia Talbert Shumba who was to be beaten by Manchester City star Mahrez, 12 minutes into the second stanza.
Zimbabwe’s consolation goal came in the 79th minute through France based Tino Kadewere.
“We are already looking at possible replacements for Chipezeze, while something miraculous might happen and see him recover, we don’t want to take that risk of having one goalkeeper in the event that he doesn’t make it, which to us is the likely scenario based on the pain that he was in and the initial assessment by the medical team,” said a member of the technical bench.
Goalkeepers’ coach Tembo Chuma is likely to recommend the likes of Supersport United’s George Chigova, FC Platinum skipper Petros Mhari as well as the reigning Castle Lager Premier Soccer League Goalkeeper of the Year and Highlanders captain Ariel Sibanda.
The Warriors need to win the return leg to keep alike their hopes of qualifying for the third time on the trot to the African Nations Cup finals, especially with Zambia beating Botswana 2-1 to bounce back in the picture for one of the two slots.
Online Reporter