Online Reporter
TAWANDA Maswanhise’s goal and assist for Motherwell against St Mirren on Saturday, his first match after returning from Warriors duty at AFCON finals, has further underlined his status as one of the most promising Zimbabwean players.
His match rating of 9.17, third behind Calum Ward and Elijah Just, both 9.21, speaks volumes about his capabilities for the club.
But Maswanhise’s latest offering will not help matters back home, where the Warriors’ technical team, led by Marian Marinica, received flak for giving him limited game time in Morocco.
At AFCON, he signed out in style, making a mockery of the South African defence in the 3-2 loss that unfortunately sealed the fate for the Warriors.
It was a sad chapter for the Warriors and the Motherwell man, but Maswanhise is not keeping his head down.
“Much has been made about whether Motherwell will be able to keep hold of Maswanhise, but surely Watt and Just will be equally in demand,” BBC Sport concluded after the match.
Unlike the Warriors where the technical team’s decisions bordered on a lack of knowledge of the player in their hands or simply poor decisions, Motherwell, who now have Celtic and Rangers in the corner, clearly know what they have.
He was back in the first eleven upon return to Scotland, a clear message from a manager who is decided about his star player.
And they will be forgiven to dream big.
“We are extremely ambitious, we want to see how far we can take it, but right now after 21 games we are in a position few expected. I want us to stay in this position and who knows, maybe we can reach out for even more,” said Motherwell manager Jens Berthel Askou.
“There will probably be people around the country who think we are (in a title race). It is not the conversation we are having at Motherwell.”
The high-flying Motherwell sit two points behind Celtic and Rangers in the Scottish Premiership after the comfortable 2-0 win against struggling St Mirren.
Having dismantled Wilfried Nancy’s flailing Celtic side at Fir Park last Tuesday, the question was could Askou’s impressive group back it up with victory against Saints, who beat them in the Premier Sports Cup semi-final?
The answer was a convincing yes. And Maswanhise was perhaps at the centre of it all.
His goal, which saw him sprint from his own half to beat the off-side, and then nutmeg the goalkeeper, shows the class that has defined this Warrior. Maswanhise had simply picked up from where he left off before the Africa Cup of Nations, netting his ninth league goal of the season on his return for Motherwell and making it 14 goals in all competitions.
Though he was at the heart of the celebrations, it was also Elijah Just’s superb threaded, defence-splitting pass which set-up the deserved first-half finish.
It took the hosts — who have played a game more than the Old Firm — a bit of time to get to the levels which garnered so much praise against the reigning champions, but once ahead, they never looked back.
A dominant second-half showing was rubber-stamped by Elliot Watt’s wonderful strike just outside the box after a frantic phase in the area. The Zimbabwean provided the assist.
“New year but same mentality,” Maswanhise stated on his Facebook page after the game.
With his continued great form this season, which could see him scoring more than 20 goals in all competitions, the Warrior has not been short of suitors. The most likely could be Leicester, with the former EPL champions, now in the Championship, believed to have a buy-back clause.
The player has also been linked with Motherwell rivals, Rangers, but analysts say that the deal could be more unlikely if the asking price goes beyond US$6 million as other teams from other leagues could also bid this January.
Former Celtic and Republic of Ireland forward Cillian Sheridan was quoted before Saturday’s game saying it will be difficult for Motherwell to keep the forward.
“They’ll genuinely be lucky to keep a hold of him,” Sheridan told the BBC’s Scottish Football Podcast.
“The start he’s had, the goals he’s scored and he’s continuing to do it at the international level in a big tournament. So, it’ll be interesting if they can hold on to him in January, I think.
“My guess would be that (it) would be a club outside Scotland. It’s good that he’s done it for Motherwell in the Scottish league, but the fact he’s doing it at a major tournament probably will alert bigger clubs in different leagues. So, I wouldn’t be surprised to see him leave the country and leave the league.” — Zimpapers Sports Hub/BBC Sport.
