Chronicle Editor
Innocent Kurira, [email protected]
WARRIORS coach, Michael Nees will have little time to enjoy the comfort of being a point away from qualifying for the 2025 Afcon as he is immediately expected to shift focus to his next assignment against Eswatini in a Chan 2025 Qualifier next week.
Back-to-back victories against Namibia last Thursday and on Monday took Zimbabwe’s points tally to eight in Group J of the Afcon Qualifying campaign.
Log leaders Cameroon are on 10 points while Kenya has four points.
Namibia, who have not won a game in their campaign are on zero points and have already been eliminated. Zimbabwe beat Namibia 1-0 last Thursday before a Walter Musona brace and a Prince Dube strike gave them a 3-1 victory on Monday.
Zimbabwe will now host Kenya on November 11 before they conclude their campaign in Cameroon on November 19.
Despite the impressive show against Namibia, coach Nees is not getting carried away.
“We would still be in even if we had lost against Namibia. We would still have it in our own hands but we wanted to be in a good position. We are happy but there are still six points to play for. You don’t know how Namibia will re-group after this,” said Nees.
Having had to play the first leg against Namibia without fans, Nees said he enjoyed playing before Zimbabwe fans who came in their numbers for the Monday game.
“It was nice to play in front of a crowd. I don’t know how many there were but the noise was definitely more than they were. It was a tough game against a strong opponent.
“They have a very strong attacking line and their front three are very dangerous. You have to be alert because if you give them space they can really punish you,” he said.
The German coach also explained how he has changed his starting line-up in the four games he has been in charge, winning two and getting two stalemates.
“A national team consists of 20 to 30 players and we want two or three players in every position so that when something happens, we substitute properly. We have to find the best strategy for each game and pick the best players for that game,” said Nees. The gaffer also spoke on the chances of Kaizer Chiefs forward Ranga Chivaviro making the Warriors team.
“We have a long list of players and we are interested in every good player. But we also have good players here. We’re monitoring everybody and when the time is right, we will decide whether to approach him or not.
“It’s not just that someone is playing at Kaizer Chiefs. We observe every player, but we should also praise those we already have. We have a very long list but we want to bring in players that add value,” said Nees.
The coach will now be turning his attention to the Chan tournament, which is a competition for players plying their trade in local leagues only.
Zimbabwe will play host to Eswatini on the weekend of October 25 to 27 with the second leg set for the weekend of November 1 to 3. The venues are yet to be revealed.
Should the Warriors eliminate Eswatini, as is expected, they will face Madagascar in the second round of the qualifiers.
Madagascar received a bye in the first round. The winner in the Madagascar-Zimbabwe contest will qualify for the Chan finals.
Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania will co-host the uniquely designed competition between February 1 and 28 next year.
Zimbabwe is returning to the competition after missing the previous edition because of a Fifa ban.
The Warriors have participated in the tournament five times, with their best performance being a fourth-place finish achieved at the 2014 finals in South Africa.
Online Reporter