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From Lawrence Moyo in BLOEMFONTEIN, South Africa
Zimbabwe 0-0 Libya
(after extra time)(Libya win 5-4 after penalty shootout)
THE Warriors’ fairytale run in the 2014 Chan tournament came to an agonising end as they suffered a penalty shootout defeat to Libya in the first semi-final at the Free State Stadium yesterday.
A $250,000 cheque is all the Warriors will take home after an impressive campaign in which they lasted the entire tournament as they will feature in Saturday’s third place play-off.
Dynamos’ Simba Sithole, Peter “Rio” Moyo, Milton Ncube and Ali Sadiki missed the target during the shootout and goalkeeper George Chigova’s heroics of making successive saves came to nothing as his opposite number claimed the match winner.
After a goalless 120 minutes of open play in which Zimbabwe were clearly the better side, the match went into penalties.
The Zimbabwe camp went into prayer just before the shootout but their prayers were somewhat not answered as Libya won the battle of nerves.
Jaure won the toss, something he has always considered as a match winning omen. Zimbabwe took the first penalty and Eric Chipeta looked confident as he blasted the ball with the goalkeeper diving the wrong way.
Danny “Deco” Phiri followed suit but Libya stayed in the contest by also finding the target. The third penalty is usually said to decide the winner in a shootout and when Sithole hit the post it spelled doom for the Warriors but Libya also missed their third spot kick, which probably explains the deadlock after the first five.
Mohamed Mahfud opted for a cheeky chip over Chigova but skied his effort. Moyo took the fourth kick for Zimbabwe and, as he has been doing in open play, he blasted the ball over the bar and Libya grabbed the advantage when Abdelrahman made it 3-2 despite Chigova going the right direction.
Hardlife Zvirekwi kept his composure and kept the Warriors in the game by converting the fifth kick and Chigova then saved from captain Ali Salama to take the shootout into sudden death.
Unfortunately Ncube opted for the centre and the Libya goalkeeper used his left foot to kick the ball out as he was diving the wrong way.
Chigova again kept the Warriors going when he stopped Mottasem Sabbou’s effort. Jaure made it 4-3 and Zimbabwe had the advantage but Libya hit back with Mohamed Elgadi sending Chigova the wrong way.
Pressure was back on the Warriors and Ali Sadiki was next with the opportunity to give Zimbabwe the advantage. He, however, showed the goalkeeper where he was likely to shoot and his effort was saved.
Chigova was called to try and make a third successive save. This time it was not to be as his opposite number beat him for pace and power.
End of the road!
The teams now head back to Cape Town for Saturday’s finale.
The first half was a cagey affair although Zimbabwe seemed to have the better scoring opportunities while Libya sat back, waiting for the Warriors to make mistakes.
Ian Gorowa, who believes in consistency, retained the same starting XI that faced Mali in a quarter-final match on Saturday.
As early as the second minute the Warriors won a freekick just outside the penalty box following a foul on Kuda Mahachi. Phiri’s effort troubled Libya goalkeeper Mohamed Abdaula but no one from Zimbabwe was on hand to capitalise on the rebound.
In the eighth minute, Sadiki showed some deft touches just outside the box and unleashed a powerful curling shot that the goalkeeper acrobatically tipped over the bar for a corner.
Libya got their first real chance in the 18th minute when Masimba Mambare committed a foul on the edge of the penalty box after tracking back to thwart a counter attack. The Libyans, however, wasted the opportunity.
How Mine’s Simba Sithole got to the end of a high ball from Ncube but his diving header could only find the side netting in the 34th minute.
The game then meandered to the halftime break.
In the second half Libya still crowded the defence and Gorowa withdrew Mambare for Donald Ngoma in the 52nd minute in search of goals.
Libya responded with a double change in the 59th minute. However, Zimbabwe still created the better chances with Sadiki shooting from range.
In the 68th minute the Warriors broke on the left through Chipeta and his cross found its way into the box but Sadiki stumbled at the crucial moment allowing Libya to clear their lines.
In the 71st minute, Osama Ghit was fortunate to escape with just a yellow card after a reckless lunge on Sadiki. Elsewhere that would have been a straight red card.
A tight offside call denied the Warriors the opener and maybe match winner in the 77th minute as second half substitute, Simba Sithole (Dynamos) smashed a volley into the back of the net but the assistant referee felt the former SuperSport hitman had benefited from being offside.
Sithole had already started celebrating and only realised that his joy had been shortlived as he approached the advertising boards.
That was to be the major talking point for the second half as Libya started employing delaying tactics to push the game into extra time.
Out of nothing, Libya almost snatched a lead in the 98th minute following a communication breakdown between Chigova and Chipeta, which allowed substitute Elmutasemu Abushnaf to poke the ball between the goalkeeper’s legs.
Fortunately for the Warriors the ball trickled past the unguarded goal and there was no other Libyan nearby to punish Zimbabwe.
A largely subdued Mahachi finally came to life just before the break as he burst into the box on the right and laid the ball for Sithole whose fierce shot on goal was blocked by a diving Libya defender before it could trouble the goalkeeper.
In the 108th minute, Ncube ghosted in from the blind side and got to the end of a brilliant cross by Mahachi but the Highlanders winger failed to connect and in the end it was an easy take for the goalkeeper.
With a minute left, Ethiopian referee Bamlak Weyesa again allowed a Libyan player to escape with a yellow card after a dangerous tackle. This time it was Mohamed Mahfud on Ngoma. Warriors players protested and the referee was quick to sanction Ncube.
That was to be the last interesting moment before the match went into penalties.
TEAMS
ZIMBABWE: G Chigova, H Zvirekwi, M Ncube, E Chipeta, P Jaure, D Phiri, A Sadiki, P. Moyo, S Sithole (S Sithole, 65th minute), K Mahachi, M Mambare (Ngoma, 52nd minute)
LIBYA: M Abdaula, M Sabbou, A Salama, A El Tabi, A Fetori, E Elhouni (M Mahfud, 81st minute), M Elgadi, O Ghit, A Almaghasi (A Mohamed, 59th minute), M Fadel (E Abushinaf, 59th minute), M Ghanudi.
Online Reporter