Mapeza Praises Chicken Inn

Gerald Sibanda

FC Platinum coach Norman Mapeza has praised Chicken Inn ahead of his side’s clash with the Gamecocks on Saturday.

He praised the Bulawayo outfit for their recent form and also said that the match is not going to be an easy one.

“On Saturday we are playing a quality side, when you look at their last three matches they have been playing brilliant football, winning against Ngezi 2-0, going to Harare beating ZPC Kariba 3-0 and they also won against Black Rhinos 1-0. It shows that we are playing a lethal side as they have not been conceding at the same time scoring goals,” said the former Zimbabwe international.

The former Warriors coach had a mixed view over the break.

“The break might be a blessing in disguise as some players who had picked up some knocks have managed to recover. In terms of the football, we will see how much it has affected us on the day of the game. For me as a coach, I get psychologically affected because my plans would be to get a break after 17 matches then you hear that all of a sudden the games have been cancelled.”

Chicken Inn have not won at Mandava since 2015, the year when they won the league and Mapeza was quick to discard the effect of history on Saturday’s match.

“I’m not someone who likes to talk too much about history. It’s a different season so if we get to this game and think about last season, we won’t get the desired result we need.”

Mapeza in conclusion, gave updates on injured players, who are Thubelihle Ncube and Hagiazo Magaya.

Big defender Lawrence Mhlanga has recovered from the injury he picked up before the break.