daniel chigunwe
Tadious Manyepo in JOHANNESBURG, South Africa
WARRIORS captain Marshall Munetsi says the squad is treating the 2026 World Cup qualifier against Lesotho, at Orlando Stadium this afternoon, like a final.
Zimbabwe are the hosts in the showdown, which kicks-off at 3pm.
With the two teams tied on two points from as many games in a Group C pool that is still wide open, with leaders Rwanda only two points ahead, the duel in Soweto today is likely to be a close contest.
Both teams had a feel of the match venue yesterday ahead of the tie.
And Munetsi knows that dropping any points at this stage of the marathon would be a huge blow to Zimbabwe’s aspirations of making it to their first-ever World Cup finals.
The Reims midfielder will make an emotional return to Orlando Stadium, where he played with so much conviction, mostly as a centre-back, while still turning out for Orlando Pirates before switching to France in 2019.
He is likely to draw applause from a significant number of South Africans who could turn up for the game, especially the Buccaneers’ fans, when he steps on the turf today.
And Munetsi declared yesterday that the Warriors wouldn’t have been here if they didn’t have self-confidence.
“Morale is very high because everyone is focused on doing something that Zimbabwe has never done, so if we want to achieve something of this magnitude, we have to work as a team. I think the word captain is just a word that goes on to mention other leaders, including other players, the coaches, and staff who work behind the scenes. We work together as a group,” said Munetsi.
“Without belief, we wouldn’t be here. So it’s the belief that brings us here, everyone believes that we can make it so we have to also make sure that the people at home and the people that are going to come and support us have that belief also.
“For us, each game is a final because if you don’t win one game, you may fail to make it through. We are very fortunate enough because we drew the first two games away from home, and now we play here in South Africa, which gives us a huge advantage. So for us, it’s just taking each game as a final and we don’t look far ahead and focus on what we have at that moment.”
Munetsi said the unity of purpose in the camp will help them overcome the Lesotho obstacle.
It has been very easy for him to bring the players together due to his international experience.
“We have to integrate as different people from different cultures and tribes. So it’s not a difficult thing you try to respect everyone and find common ground because we are playing for the Zimbabwe national team. For me, it’s just been an easy job because most of the guys that are here have been together for a long time, and we are good friends, even outside football, so it makes the job that much easier.
“Now the squad composition has changed because of the net that we are casting very wide. We used to have a lot of South African-based players, but now we have a lot of European-based players. It gives us an added advantage because we have a lot of international players playing at the highest level, and most of them are still young, so the future is bright. We have to just be able to manage them and have that continuity.
“We need to focus on the game against Lesotho to be able to win.”
Coach Jairos Tapera said there won’t be any excuses, even though Zimbabwe will be playing at home away from home.
“We are very much hopeful that we can push through and get the result that we want. It’s a very big game for us, away from home yes, but we will not take that as an excuse because what we want and the requirements we will need to get the result are there,” said Tapera.
“We just have to organise ourselves and ensure that the players are ready for the challenge. I want to promise everyone who is supporting us and who will come to watch us that we are going to put everything into it tomorrow(today). We promise that we are going to get a positive result.
“What is very important is that the association kept this team together. It made our life easier in terms of finding a group that had been together for some time. It allowed us to concentrate on tactics more than anything else. We are coming from a break where the fitness levels might not be where they should be, but we are going all out to win the match.”
Warriors probable line-up:
Donovan Benard, Andrew Mbeba, Devine Lunga, Gerald Takwara, Teenage Hadebe, Marshal Munetsi, Jordan Zemura, Andy Rinomhota, Tawanda Maswanhise, Tawanda Chirewa, Tymon Machope
Online Reporter