Eddie Chikamhi Zimpapers Sports Hub
ZIMBABWE’S representatives in the CAF Champions League Scottland need to undertake serious soul-searching ahead of their return to continental football, with a daunting assignment against Angolan giants Petro de Luanda looming this Sunday at the National Sports Stadium.
The Mabvuku side will host the first leg of the second-round tie hoping to keep their fairytale debut continental campaign alive. However, the challenge comes at a time when the reigning Castle Lager Premier Soccer League champions are grappling with mounting pressure on the domestic front.
The prestigious Caf Champions League, a competition which club owner and president Scott Sakupwanya is so passionate about, arrives against the backdrop of a difficult spell in Scottland’s title defence as the last few weeks have been particularly unkind to the Zimbabwean champions.
Their shock 1-0 defeat to relegation-threatened ZPC Kariba on Saturday saw them surrender top spot in the league standings for the first time in four months.
The setback came at a critical stage of the championship race, allowing Hardrock to reclaim pole position with a two-point advantage heading into the final four matches of the season.
It was hardly the ideal preparation for Scottland’s return to the continental stage, where they started off by edging Eswatini side Nsingizini Hotspurs 1-0 on aggregate in the preliminary round.
But Petro de Luanda, perennial campaigners in Africa, present a tougher challenge which need serious preparation.
Despite the disappointment in Kariba, Scottland coach Norman Mapeza insisted his side will not abandon either their domestic or continental ambitions.
Mapeza admitted the defeat exposed several shortcomings, including defensive lapses from set-pieces and a lack of cutting edge in attack.
“Talk of our first half performance, it didn’t look that good. Then coming into the second half as well, we struggled. Then I think from the set-piece (that resulted in the goal), we could have done better,” he said.
“But we move on. We still have four games to go. We’re not giving up yet. It’s still game on. We have to forget about this game and focus on our game against Petro Luanda on Sunday.”
The defeat in Kariba left Scottland second on the table with 61 points, two behind Hardrock, who enhanced their title credentials with a 2-0 victory over Bulawayo Chiefs to move to 63 points.
Mapeza’s men had set the pace in the title race since Week 17 after dislodging Hardrock from the summit. However, the two contenders have experienced contrasting fortunes in recent weeks.
While disappointed by his team’s display in Kariba, Mapeza believes the result should not define Scottland’s campaign.
“We struggled, to be honest. We could not play our usual passing game; maybe it was difficult because of the bumpy pitch but at the end of the day, well done to ZPC Kariba.
“I think they wanted it more than us but like I said, we now shift our focus to our game against Petro Luanda.
“I always tell these guys that when games are tough and it is difficult to create opportunities, let’s make use of those set-pieces. Unfortunately, we had some good opportunities but we couldn’t bury
them,” said Mapeza.
With only four rounds of fixtures remaining, the championship race has effectively become a two-horse contest between Scottland and Hardrock.
Unlike Scottland, who must balance domestic and continental commitments, Hardrock can focus exclusively on the league campaign.
However, coach Kelvin Kaindu remains cautious despite his side’s impressive seven-match winning streak.
“Football is different; what we need is just to be consistent with our results. Like I said, this is the seventh game that we are winning in a row.
“We haven’t drawn, we keep on picking points at a very, very crucial time. The league is about to end with four games to play. Every point that we get is a plus for the team,” said Kaindu.
The run-in promises to be exciting. Hardrock will face Dynamos (away), MWOS (home), Simba Bhora (away) and then conclude at home against FC Platinum.
Scottland, on the other hand have three matches at Rufaro when they face Chicken Inn, CAPS United, Herentals before travelling to Triangle for their last match of the season.
Kaindu says the Kwekwe side needs to maintain the momentum.
“It’s not easy to get to the top. I can see even from the time that the season started, I think there was a CAPS United that was leading for some time. Then came Scottland, which had dominated for
quite a long time.
“I think they have been on top of the log for a very long time. But now that we are on top, we don’t want to put ourselves under unnecessary pressure.
“Like we said earlier on, our objective was to be consistent and stay in the league. Anything that will come ahead of us is a bonus,” said Kaindu.
