adminoust holders Uganda from the Cecafa Cup in Tanzania.
The quarter-final showdown starts at 1pm and is live on SuperSport 9.
Although the Warriors are fielding a largely developmental side against teams that are almost at full-strength, Zimbabwe has always done well against Uganda when it comes to football.
Records show that Zimbabwe and Uganda have met 11 times with the Warriors winning four games and drawing six.
The Cranes have only beaten Zimbabwe once but their record at the Cecafa tournament is unrivalled.
Uganda have won the Cecafa Cup a record 11 times and, following their defeat to Burundi in their last group game, coach Bobby Williamson vowed they would bounce back to put their campaign back on the right track. Both Uganda and Zimbabwe won two of their Cecafa group matches and lost one each.
Uganda started off their campaign this year with a 2-1 win over Zanzibar and went on to wallop Somalia 4-0 in their second game.
Zimbabwe team manager, Wellington Mpandare, yesterday said they have no injuries in the camp and they were ready for the challenge from the Cranes.
“Mostly it’s very hot in the afternoons and the worst part is that we are playing at 2:00pm (Tanzania time) when the temperatures are usually very high,” said Mpandare.
“But we just have to adjust to the conditions and play our game.
“We had a good workout today (yesterday) and from the training everything appears well in the camp and all the players are available except (Eric) Mudzingwa who is suspended.”
The technical team will be forced to use Dynamos midfielder Timire Mamvura to partner captain Daniel Veremu in central defence in the absence of Mudzingwa, while Blue Ribbon’s James Jam provides cover just in front of the defenders.
Daniel Ngoma, who has found the target twice, is expected to lead the attack as a lone striker, with support from midfielders Charles Sibanda and Joel Ngodzo while Rahman Kutsanzira and Benjamin Marere operate from the wings.
The Warriors beat Djibouti 2-0 in their first game but suffered a setback when they lost 2-0 to Rwanda in the next game.
Mapeza’a men, however, sprung back to life and booked a place in the quarter-finals courtesy of a 2-1 win over Tanzania.
“Uganda are physical and are not a bad team either according to the tournament standards,” said Mpandare.
“They had good wins in the round robin phase but when you watch the game they lost to Burundi, it shows they are beatable. So we remain positive and hoping for the best.”
Warriors’ coach Mapeza said he wanted his men to keep possession better, something they lacked even in their victory over Tanzania.
“We need to work harder at regaining ball possession because our reaction when we lose the ball is not good enough and we need to improve on that,” Mapeza told SuperSport.com.
The Cranes are ranked 91st, according to the last rankings released by Fifa, 21 places behind Zimbabwe.
But they came close to qualifying for the 2012 Nations Cup finals only to falter in the last game at home when they drew.
Uganda coach Williamson said he will be cautious of the Warriors after watching Zimbabwe’s game against Tanzania. The Scot said Uganda lost to Burundi because of complacency.
“Zimbabwe is a good team. We have to be at our best to beat them.
“For now we are focusing on training and working on the players’ attitude coming from that loss.
“It’s a different game against Zimbabwe and it will take care of itself.”
“I have watched them play. I know what they are capable of. We are doing our homework and training well. We’ll see when the game comes.”
Williamson is likely to welcome back first choice goalkeeper Abel Dhaira who missed the Burundi tie due to illness and captain Andrew Mwesigwa.
“The good news is Andy (Mwesigwa) is back and Dhaira (Abel) trained well today (yesterday).
“We’ll see how he responds between now and the game.”
Zim probable line-up:
George Chigova, Tapiwa Khumbuyani, Qadr Amini, Daniel Veremu, Timire Mamvura, James Jam, Joel Ngodzo, Charles Sibanda, Benjamin Marere, Rahman Kutsanzira, Donald Ngoma.
Online Reporter