Robson Sharuko: Admiring Taderera

two blocs of the huge blue army on one side and the smaller but noisy and aggressive green army on the other.
So much has been said about this contest, with some of the experts and the former players saying, with a bit of justification, that the Harare Derby has lost some of the spark that used to make it the capital’s ultimate Premiership fixture.

While it was always going to be asking for too much, to believe that we would keep getting the quality crop that brought Joel Shambo, Stanley Ndunduma, Stix Mtizwa, Shacky Tauro, Moses Chunga, Kenneth Jere and Edward Katsvere into the trenches, it’s also true that we aren’t the only ones who are wondering what has happened to the production lines.

Our brothers across the Limpopo are also wondering what has happened to the production line that used to produce the likes of Jomo Sono and Ace Ntsoelengoe, and it’s the same story across the Zambezi where the Zambians are still waiting for the next Kalusha Bwalya or Godfrey “Ucar” Chitalu.

But Orlando Pirates didn’t stop, when Jomo Sono left, and people still support the Bucs today even when it’s very clear that Isaac Chansa would not have made the ‘C’ side when Jomo was playing.
Fans still support Kaizer Chiefs, even when they have been waiting for a decade to find a midfielder as good as Doctor Khumalo, and the fans in the Copperbelt still support their teams in Zambia, when the crop of players coming out now would not have been good enough to carry Chitalu’s boots.

Because we support clubs, and not necessarily players who come and go, our bond to the teams remain, even when it becomes clear that the quality of the playing staff has suffered, and we live in hope, believing that another day and another year will bring a genius who would change it all.

That’s the magic of football.
So thousands will go to the National Sports Stadium tomorrow, simply because it’s CAPS United versus Dynamos, and there is a big meaning to that contest, even though we know that we will never anyone as good as Shambo or Katsvere on show tomorrow.

Some people have said the big boys are struggling in the league this season but when I see that CAPS United are just five points off the pace, with 51 points to play for, I choose not to swallow that argument.
Dynamos have battled for consistency but I feel it’s just a spark that they need, to come back into life, and we should not forget what this side produced during the pre-season and, crucially, in that game against MC Alger at Rufaro.

I’m going to the National Sports Stadium tomorrow because our Zim-Classico always guarantees something and, if tomorrow’s game can produce the 10 goals that came from the two teams’ BancABC Sup8r Cup final and Bob ’87 Challenge Cup, then it’s worth watching.

All The Pretty Voices
Two weeks have passed since Zimbabwe beat Mali 2-1 at Rufaro in a Nations Cup qualifier but I keep getting a flood of e-mails and text messages from fans, who watched the game live on national television, complaining that commentator Admire Taderera and his analyst Alois Bunjira were too negative.

I have listened to the commentary, again and again, and feel that Taderera and Bunjira were certainly not negative but clearly firm.
But that’s the beauty of debate and, after taking hours listening to the commentary and putting the commentators’ words on paper, I today reproduces the first half commentary of that game, for the sake of the readers of this newspaper, so that they can make their judgments.

The recording I got, was poor in terms of its audio quality, in the first four minutes. So we pick up the action in the fifth minute, when the sound gets very clear.

So here were go:

The Commentary
ADMIRE TADERERA – It’s a corner, Mali will be the first one to take, let’s see what they can do in a set-piece, somebody was coming up on the blind side of the defence, the corner kick will be taken, far side. It’s a curling right footer, that was a free header, over the bar.
Noone from Zimbabwe got there and it’s about size, with those tall Malian guys, you gotta be careful, really careful coz when you give them free headers like that, that’s the guy who was injured earlier, Cheick Diabate.

I don’t think we want to be doing that, this is where you want guys with big hearts, who make sure, you don’t want to put yourself under unnecessary pressure. Tinashe Nengomasha, there, and it didn’t get to the person but I think that was started by the goalkeeper.
(Ball is switched to Khama Billiat)

Ooh, that youngster is gonna give us goals I tell you, Khama Billiat, it didn’t get to anyone, it will be a throw, Alois I can tell you that Mali, yes, because they come from North Africa, West Africa there, but they are not a very successful side, not very good when they travel, and in the Cup of Nations, they have ended up in Round One.

But the Zimbabwean players must learn one thing, they are certain things that the referee will not blow for and that was just an example of such.
Well done, and Zimbabwe with a good clearance, and there is Knowledge, his predatory instincts just coming in, adrenalin still pumping high at the moment, this is Mali now, beginning to get into this game, this is where you want a commanding midfield.

ALOIS BUNJIRA – Admire, I think we have started this game slowly, for a team at home, and to arouse the fans we need to, to be more vigilant when we attack.
ADMIRE TADERERA – Let’s see how vigilant we will be in this attack.

(Khama, wide on the left, pushes the ball to Musona and gets a return, clearly on side, one touch and fires home)
Well, the linesman had his flag up, I’m not too sure why, I might want to take a look at that situation again. There was Khama Billiat, testing the net, look at this, was he offside?

Well, that will be a talking point, I tell you, at half-time. Zimbabwe have hit the back of the net but the referee, or the linesman, says NO! Alois, what’s your thoughts on that one?

ALOIS BUNJIRA – Well, I thought he was in an offside position when he received that pass but the action happened quickly that by the time he took a shot there were a lot of bodies in the box. BUT, FROM THE ANGLE THAT I WAS LOOKING AT, I THOUGHT HE (KHAMA) WAS IN AN OFFSIDE POSITION WHEN HE RECEIVED THE BALL.

ADMIRE TADERERA – Offside position when you receive the ball, (ball is switched into the Zimbabwe area), good turn, we don’t allow somebody to do that. Three Zimbabwean backbenchers, they all turned with the striker and they gave the striker a chance to look goalwards, it’s 10 minutes, 11 minutes now, second corner-kick, Mali, they are applying more pressure than us.

We have hit the back of the net but the referee says no, Kapini organises the back four, corner kick number two comes through, last time they had a free header, the goalkeeper, this time well positioned, good throw, straight upfront, this is Ovidy turning. He is looking for support (Ovidy is tackled), then the referee must gave a yellow card. Indeed a yellow card. Abdou Traore, there is no reason to do that, Ovidy was so far away from goal.

The captain (Mwanjali), just a lazy tap back, that’s the Chief (Majabvi), this is Mapemba on an overlap, the overlap is good. I wasn’t so sure about the cross, and so it’s the first corner kick to Zimbabwe. Mali organise themselves at the back, taking the corner kick, Vusa Nyoni, I think it was, is it Knowledge, too far away to see, but the corner kick comes through, it’s way deep, controlled now, on the far side, and we have given away possession unnecessarily, when we had it 100 percent, throw in to Zimbabwe.

Getting into the first quarter of an hour here, they have kept it on the floor but you don’t get that much time, not in a game like this, no space to move, young Khama Billiat comes forward to support, that’s much better, you hassle, you take possession, through ball now, this is Nyasha Mushekwi, he hasn’t really gotten to the end of that ball. It’s a throw in on the far side.

AT THE MOMENT, WE SEEM TO BE HURRYING PASSES UPFRONT, WE SEEM NOT QUITE ORGANISED.

Well taken, ohhh, that was a bit unfortunate, nobody in the middle of the park, the forwards have to race back, this is Mushekwi, good turn, goal kick, very good hassling by Ovidy Karuru just making sure that the ball does not get to the end it (the move). One thing for Ovidy is that he is a bit lucky because, like most of the guys there, he plays in France as well, he would have known most of these guys.
ALOIS BUNJIRA – Yes, true Admire, most of the Malian players are based in Mali (certainly wanted to say France), and Ovidy Karuru plays with them and he watches them play all the time and I’m sure, of all our players, he should be the most confident player on the pitch. From what I have seen so far, Admire, I don’t think Mali poses a big danger to Zimbabwe, they are not the best of sides that I have seen in this group.

I think Nyasha Mushekwi and Knowledge Musona, they need to get into the game I think, because so far, almost 20 minutes gone, they haven’t really shown what they can do. They need to make good runs. I have been impressed so far by Tapiwa Kapini, he is collecting all the crosses and is giving confidence to his defence.

ADMIRE TADERERA – Giving confidence to the defenders, Zimbabwe again with that throw in to see if they can cause a bit of problems here, taken it short to Knowledge Musona, he does have the knack of getting out of situations like that. Here is the coach, Norman Mapeza. Good understanding at the back, much better ball but the captain, there, for Mali, was ready, to ours, captain to captain, touching it away.
Tapiwa Kapini now, finds Ovidy, always well positioned, Ovidy now, coming forward into the middle of the park, he is looking for support, the Chief gives him that support but the Chief is a bit slow, he will not find that much space, in an African game.

ALOIS BUNJIRA – That’s what I said Admire, when Ovidy Karuru cut inside, Knowledge Musona and Nyasha Mushekwi didn’t call for the ball and were just standing and Ovidy was asking, who should I pass (to), who should I pass. They are not in the game yet, those two (Musona and Mushekwi), once they start clicking, I think we get get something out of this game.

ADMIRE TADERERA – Once they start clicking, at the moment not yet. It’s Mali who are showing us a thing or two, Modibo Maiga, confidently back to the goalkeeper. NOONE SEEMS TO BE RUNNING OFF THE BALL, THERE IS MAPEMBA, HE IS LOOKING FOR SUPPORT, NOONE HAS COME FORWARD OR SHOWN THAT THEY WANT TO GET TO THE END OF THAT BALL.

The Chief, there, just gets to it, finally somebody showing appetite for the game, for the ball, I think the Chief needs to come to the party here. Justice majabvi, he is a bit slow when the ball gets to him, he wants to touch the ball once or twice, you see, Mali, they have been waiting for us to come forward, well done to Tapiwa Kapini.

AT WHAT POINT ARE WE GONNA SHOW, AT WHAT POINT WILL THE STRIKERS SHOW, YOU KNOW, APPETITE FOR IT? At the moment, Mushekwi, throw in, will this be a free-kick, it’s a throw in on the far side being taken by Ismael Keita, (Warriors fans are shown on television).

They (fans) have painted themselves in all kinds of colours, Zimbabwe versus Mali, African Cup of Nations, You gotta hurry, you don’t find time and that was Knowledge Musona and we wanted something from him.
There is confirmation of the yellow card, Abdou Traore.

WE DON’T SEEM TO HAVE THE KEY TO OPEN THE MALIAN DEFENCE, WHENEVER WE UPFRONT, IN THE LAST QUARTER, WE SEEM TO PUSH THE BALL BACK. Offside on the far side, quarter of an hour gone, I said in the first 20 minutes, Zimbabwe must score a goal if they are entertaining hopes of going through because my analysis is that they (Mali) have come here just to look for a point.

Because, that’s how you qualify in this tournament, get a point away from home, win at home, three points in Mali, one point away from Mali. They went to Cape Verde and they lost…they played Zimbabwe at home and won and I think they also played Liberia at home and won and, at home, they seem to be doing the right thing.

Kapini with possession, Khama Billiat moving into position, it’s taken over in the middle of the park by the Chief, the Chief again in the middle of the park, touched to Mapemba, Zimbabwe now in the hunt, ohhh, what was that? Zimbabwe being gifted a corner kick.

Of course, you cannot blame the coach, the coach has done his best, he has put out his most lethal strikeforce, to Ovidy Karuru, riding one tackle and, still, ohhhh, offside? That was a bit, well, this man (assistant referee) is the one keeping the lines here.
The big goalkeeper, Diakite, Soumbeyla Diakite, free kick to Zimbabwe, it’s quickly taken, THIS IS KNOWLEDGE’S FIRST REAL TOUCH, IT’S MUSONA AGAIN, RIDING A TACKLE, MY WORD, THIS YOUNGSTER

CAN REALLY TURN ON THE POWER, LOOK AT THE EXCITEMENT (an image of an excited Zimbabwe fan appears on screen) OF THE FANS, BUT YOU WANT TO DO THIS AND MOVE FORWARD, KNOWLEDGE MUSONA.
Zimbabwe today sporting a Puma kit, it was unveiled last Friday, although negotiations have not yet been concluded. There is the captain (Mali), he is taking his time because, ultimately, the more time kicks on, Mali are hoping, let it go, if we come up with . . ., ooohhh, Vusa Nyoni, what was that all about, he put the team under pressure unnecessarily, the only person who is really in the game is Ovidy Karuru and, again, we having to have Khama Billiat come all the way back to try and chase this game.

Throw in, Zimbabwe with a throw, the fans are urging them on. It’s Ovidy again, he is fighting a lone battle here. There is an opportunity, opportunity for Zimbabwe, that has not been taken, it’s not been taken. Wow, (Billiat shoots from the edge of the box, the ‘keeper saves), that was a good try from afar and that’s all we can say, WOW!
ALOIS BUNJIRA – That’s better performance from Zimbabwe Admire. (Benjani appears on screen, sitting in the VIP Enclosure) But I thought Nyasha Mushekwi should have done better and should have shielded the

ball better than he did, but Khama Billiat took a good shot and there’s Benjani.
ADMIRE TADERERA – There is Benjani there, watching this match, he has come all the way, former captain, again the ball being pumped in, one on one this time, the goalkeeper keeps his line, I thought there was some bit of handling there by the big defender but that one will zip away for a throw in.

Zimbabwe with a throw, Norman Mapeza is up, shouting, bellowing a few instructions, he wants action, action, Mushekwi with a touch, it’s Ovidy Karuru, the only livewire so far in this Zimbabwean line-up, he is just showing us what pressure he is in when he plays overseas.
He is matching the Malians, man-for-man, Mapemba, unfortunately, that didn’t get to him.
THE TRUTH OF THE MATTER IS THAT THE ZIMBABWEAN TEAM ARE YET TO REALLY SETTLE DOWN, HERE COMES THE CAPTAIN, GOOD THROUGH BALL, MAPEMBA IS ONSIDE BUT THE CROSS IS

POOR, IT’S THE SECOND CROSS THAT HAS COME THROUGH LIKE THAT, YOU WANT TO VARY THE CROSS, YOU OUGHT TO VARY YOUR CROSSES, YOU COME FORWARD AND YOU BRING IT UP, YOU COME FORWARD AND YOU BRING IT DOWN.
Free kick, Vusa Nyoni has come forward and has volunteered to come forward and take it, Khama Billiat is in there, WOW, the young man who came flying on the far side, that was Knowledge Musona, throw in, there is the Malian substitutes’ bench, the coach, throw in to Zimbabwe, they take it quickly, I think it’s the trademark, where we continue to play going backwards.

IT’S AS IF WE WANT TO GO BACK TO THE GOALKEEPER, STARTING, THERE IS NOONE IN MIDFIELD WHO IS READY, IT’S MUSHEKWI, IS HE READY TO TAKE IT, THE GOALKEEPER COMES FORWARD, NYASHA HAS TAKEN IT, GOOD FIGHTING SPIRIT, AND AGAIN, WE PLAY IT BACK, TAKEN IT SHORT THIS TIME, IT’S JUSTICE MAJABVI, THE CHIEF, IT’S PLAYED WIDE, THE CROSS IS EARLY, BUT IT’S WIDE.

Knowledge seems to be saying, ‘yes, I appreciate that you want to kick it to my side but put it down’, the big goalkeeper will take his time, Soumbeyla Diakite, time is ticking in the wrong direction for Zimbabwe, it might be in the first half, Father in possession, Nengomasha, good ball, well played wide, unfortunately Khama Billiat just got there, just a second late, it’s one second too late.

Free kick, he (referee) didn’t want to give them the benefit of doubt, the Malians, they still had possession, it’s a free kick, just over the halfway line, deep inside their own half, just over, nobody is there quickly to take it away, goalkeeper, Kapiniu stayed, he kept his cool and, so far, I think he hasn’t really been called to make a real save. Kapini will want to get out of his box, I think these are some of things that you say, why are we having to do this? Because we keep the ball more in our own half and we don’t have possession that’s constructive and, this time, we come out of it, Father Nengomasha, Mushekwi just chesting it down, no space, he’s taken it, and again, corner kick.

It’s the one thing I say about our players, they don’t go in for the jugular. There was possession, he is just on the edge of the box, and I have seen overseas, in games where you would find somebody unleashing a thunderbolt from there that the goalkeeper cannot hold.

But we seem to want to walk with the ball into the back of the net, but we have a corner kick, third corner kick, is it third time lucky, nobody on the blind side of the Zimbabwe attack. We get a throw in, and the Malians, there was a guy close there, 30 minutes gone, and he didn’t want to come and play it, he thought, aaaah, why bother, oooh, Ovidy Karuru, he’s really been such a revelation, another corner kick,

I can tell you right now the coach (Mali) is beginning to devise something for him (Ovidy) because out of the entire Zimbabwe contingent, he seems to be the only one who poses danger.
Thomas Sweswe has gone to the far side, will he get to the end of the ball, throw in to be taken.
WE DON’T SEEM TO HAVE ANY URGENCY AT ALL, WE TAKE A THROW IN AND WE PRETTY SLOW AS WE COME FORWARD, THERE IS NOBODY MARKING THERE, GOES OUT OF PLAY, THROW IN

ZIMBABWE, 15 MORE MINUTES, 14 NOW TO GO.
(Warriors push ball back to ‘keeper)
WAS THIS OUR PLOT, YOU SEE, EVERYTIME YOU DO THESE THINGS, MOST EXPERIENCED TEAMS WILL BE WATCHING YOU, THEY WILL JUST WAIT FOR THE MOMENT TO POUNCE AND THAT WAS AN OPPORTUNITY.

The ball was played out of the box by the goalkeeper (Kapini) and nobody played it back to him well and this is Karuru, the only engine room that Zimbabwe has and nobody is coming forward to open up space for him and they are all sort of watching and, again, we are having to be forced to do this (pushing ball back to Kapini).
IT’S AS IF THE ZIMBABWEANS ARE SCARED, GIVE THE BALL, AND THERE IS KNOWLEDGE, THROUGH BALL, THERE IS MUSHEKWI, HE WILL GET HIMSELF BOOKED.

ALOIS BUNJIRA – YES, ADMIRE, YOU WILL SEE THAT OUR OFF THE BALL RUNNING IS SO BAD. Whenever someone has the ball, you don’t see any options coming up, maybe someone decides, five minutes later, ahhhhh, let me just open up for this guy. It’s not like a machine, like when Barcelona plays, when one player has the ball, everyone wants the ball.
You see the movement, and you see, aaahhh, five players opening, but you can see when our Zimbabwean guys have the ball, noone is prepared to open for the ball and that’s why our movement is going backwards, because noone is opening up front.

ADMIRE TADERERA – Only Ovidy Karuru, the Chief is slow, really, either he is finding the pace too much or he wants his space, these guys don’t give you your space, nobody does that. Throw in, Ovidy Karuru, no Nyasha Mushekwi at the moment, only Khama Billiat showed us some kind of effervescence at the beginning of the match, one on one, we seem in disarray at the moment.
Only Ovidy, for me, has done it, he is just there, you know, he comes through, Musona, taken away from him and Traore Kalilou, there is a man in an offside position, well done, that was very good defensive play.

THEY (ZIMBABWEAN FORWARDS) ARE CALLING FOR IT NOW BUT THEY ARE NOT OPENING UP, LOOK AT WHERE MUSONA AND NYASHA MUSHEKWI ARE, ALL OF THEM, PLAYING TWIN STRIKER POSITIONS, AND I THINK IT SHOULD HAVE BEEN FOR NYASHA TO SAY I CAN SEE KNOWLEDGE, HE IS CLOSE TO ME, THERE IS NOONE ON THE BLIND SIDE, NOBODY, SO EVEN IF THE CROSS COMES THROUGH, AND IT DOESN’T.

ALOIS BUNJIRA – THE RUNNING OFF THE BALL, FOR ZIMBABWE, ADMIRE, IS SHOCKING AND I DON’T KNOW, ESPECIALLY KNOWLEDGE MUSONA AND NYASHA MUSHEKWI. THEY ARE NOT MAKING AN EFFORT TO CREATE SPACE FOR THEMSELVES AND MAKE OPTIONS AND MAKE IT EASY FOR THEIR MIDIFLEDERS TO PASS THEM THE BALL AND INITIATE ATTACKS.
ADMIRE TADERERA – You can see that the coach is under pressure, the puffing of the cheeks just tells you that things are not what they should be. At training they are doing (ball is pushed back again), we don’t want to be doing things like that, from the halfway line, definitely not. It’s Karuru, fighting for possession in a lone battle for Zimbabwe here. He is strong (Malian player), very strong lad, he was on his feet, did you see that, he didn’t even fall, Cheick Diakite, look at that, he still had possession, two Zimbabwean players, he still had possession.

Possession is a challenge for us, well, it’s up to Norman Mapeza to see if he can sort it out at half-time but this man (Mali coach comes on screen), so far, so good, he has played 45 minutes, if he goes through this half without conceding, he would have played 45 minutes but so far he has played a good 35 minutes.
He hasn’t conceded and Zimbabwe, they seem to want to play the ball back to the goalkeeper, most of the time. Nil all, the scoreline, Zimbabwe Nil, Mali, the Eagles of Mali Nil, the Warriors need to find and sharpen their spears here. There is noone there and, yeah, they will take their sweet time. Slowly, our midfield seems spreading.

Hats off to Ovidy, he has played just a tight game, he needs somebody to complement him, he doesn’t find him at all, good goalkeeping, there was Mapemba, who was sleeping, when you playing with somebody like Ovidy, you need to be there, he plays nice, short passes and there was Mapemba thinking that, aaahhhh, Ovidy can do it, he gonna move forward I think, then the ball is played, because Ovidy wants to open up, he wants the ball back.

ALOIS BUNJIRA – Yes, Admire, that’s what Clemens Westerhof used to tell us that if one player has got the ball, then the rest of the 10 players . . . if the centre striker has got the ball then even the goalkeeper is an option, be somewhere where you can get the ball, don’t stand and think that my teammate gonna do that. You must always be an option to your teammates, maybe he can get stuck in his idea, you must always be there to support him.

Like now, Gilbert Mapemba is passing to Ovidy and he thinks his job is done and Ovody gets stuck and passes to him and he (Mapemba) was sleeping.
ADMIRE TADERERA – Sleeping and here comes a shot from a distance, hey, (a Malian logo comes on screen), the supporters are here from Mali, well this is one of the guys, I thought that was a flag for a moment, well, it’s one of the guys on the bench. Chase him, chase him, you never know what happens, it’s headed back inside, Thomas Sweswe the centreback, touched on by Father Nengomasha, I tell you, free kick Khama Billiat.

I’m really impressed by the way he (Khama) has played, though, at the moment, he is being starved of the ball and I don’t k now why. You can see that Khama is unlocking his defender, use him and make sure he gets involved, that will be a goal kick. Our players seem to want the coach to tell them everything.

ALOIS BUNJIRA – Yes, Admire, so far I think that’s our strongest point, our wings are our strongest points. We have Ovidy Karuru who has really been a livewire in this game and we also have Khama, he hasn’t gotten much possession yet but you can see something could happen if he has the ball to his feet. That’s what we should be using.

ADMIRE TADERERA – We are not using him, all these high balls, I see Knowledge complaining but the one thing that the strikers must know is that they are also a part of the team. Don’t just wait for the midfielders, like that, you then come through, you mark the ball, you make it tight, you know, you wanna make sure that you don’t give space at all to the back four of Mali, make sure they get stuck inside their own box.

And there we go (ball pushed back to Kapini), once more, finally here comes Mapemba, is there anyone who is running off the ball on this one, Ovidy is waiting for it, he is the only Warriors that I see, finally the Chief realises that we don’t have that much space.
(Billiat crosses into the box, Mushekwi fails to control and Nengomasha’s shot is tipped over the bar by the ‘keeper)

What an opportunity!!!!! That was Nengomasha, a quick turn, 41 minutes, corner kick, the goalkeeper with the swiftest of reflexes, Nyasha Mushekwi, it should have opened for him, the goalkeeper, my word, just touched that one over the bar.
ALOIS BUNJIRA – That should have gone in Admire, that should have gone in.
ADMIRE TADERERA – My word, we execute some of these things like we are trying to execute them (for the first time) in a real game, ahhhh, look at this, the way we are being attacked by two people, we must mark while they are still way up, pick the guys up, throw in.

I TELL YOU, YOU ALMOST WANNA CRY WHEN YOU WATCH OUR GAME BECAUSE WHEN YOU WATCH BARCELONA, FOR INSTANCE, MAN, THEY REDUCE ANY SIDE INTO AN ORDINARY SIDE, YES, PERHAPS BECAUSE THEY ARE THE ENTIRE SPANISH SIDE, SAVE FOR MESSI AND THE GOALKEEPER, BUT REALLY, I TELL YOU, THEY ARE JUST A MARVEL TO WATCH, THEY ARE A MACHINE IN OPERATION, AND I MUST CONFESS THAT I HAVE BEEN IMPRESSED BY THE MALIAN BACK FOUR.

They are right there, they are right on point, the midfielders come back, Ovidy Karuru, touches it well, finally, Ovidy now, that’s much better, ohhhh, WHAT A BALL, WHAT A BALL . . . OHHHHHHH . . .
KNOWLEDGE MUSONA HAS ARRIVED. IT’S ONE-NIL, ZIMBABWE. MAN, THIS BOY IS MAGIC, ABSOLUTE MAGIC, THAT IS THE LIONEL MESSI OF ZIMBABWE. ONE CHANCE, ONE CHANCE, BUT WHAT A

PLAYER OVIDY KARURU, KNOWLEDGE MUSONA JUST TOUCHED IT ONCE, TWICE, THE THIRD TIME, THE BACK OF THE NET. THAT’S HOW HE PLAYS. IT’S ONE-NIL ZIMBABWE, ALOIS, YOUR THOUGHTS ON THERE?

ALOIS BUNJIRA – Brilliant, brilliant football Admire, that’s what we have been talking about, make a run, make a move, Ovidy Karuru, the real livewire of the Zimbabwe team, he switched positions, he played inside, and then followed the ball inside, got the pass back, played it wide to Knowledge Musona, and he knew exactly what he was doing and what a finish by Knowledge Musona, the Lionel Messi of Zimbabwe.

He only needed one chance and it’s in the back of the net, that was brilliant finishing by Knowledge Musona. What a goal!

ADMIRE TADERERA – Brilliant finish by Knowledge Musona here, but that’s one thing that you can say about this youngster, he has got an eye on the ball, clearance is good, the touch by Zimbabwe, they give it to Ovidy again, it’s Karuruuuuu, he was selfish there, I think he thought why not take all the glory here, the board is up, one minute of injury time, you want to make sure this side does not equalise because that’s what normally happens when you score a goal.

Get in, mark him tight, mark him close, you see, there was an opportunity for an equaliser, wasn’t there? And there was no Zimbabwean defender there.
ALOIS BUNJIRA –Not al all, I don’t know what was happening there.

ADMIRE TADERERA -But he (Malian striker) was offside, anyway, Norman Mapeza is up, he knows that when you score a goal, nine cases out of 10, the opposition will come back and get an equaliser.
They take it through, Traore Kalilou, and pushed back there into play, it is Mali, Traore Bakaye, back to the goalkeeper Soumbeyla Diakite.

It’s the African Cup of Nations qualifying match and the referee blows to end the first 45 minutes.
l Next week, I will bring you the second half commentary of that match. So let’s meet at the giant stadium tomorrow and let the better team win.
Chicharitooooooooooooo.
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