admin
Zimbabwe won the reverse fixture 3-1 at Rufaro in September and now need to avoid a defeat by a two-goal margin to sail through to the finals.
A draw will also be enough for the Warriors while a win will be like the icing on the cake.
For Angola, nothing short of a victory by more than two goals, will be enough to wipe out the deficit suffered in the first leg.
But, despite the advantage, Gumbo has pointed out that the Warriors should look for an early strike to consolidate their position in the game.
“We are looking at different plans as we go into the match.
“There is Plan A which we want to use and if it fails we have to use Plan B and then Plan C.
“If one plan does not work, we then change to the other.
“At least we have options to chose from but that does not mean that we are going to sit back and wait for them to come and attack us,” said Gumbo.
Gumbo hinted that his priority would be to get a win in Angola and seal their berth in Angola.
“For now we are not looking at even a draw. Looking at the current situation, it’s them who are under pressure.
“Besides the deficit, Angola are playing before their home crowd.
“So we have to be very positive in our approach to the game.
“We have to go there and fight just because if we sit back they will come at us,” said Gumbo.
Gumbo now stands on the threshold of guiding Zimbabwe to their third appearance at the Africa Nations Cup finals.
In 2004, Gumbo was part of Sunday Chidzambwa’s backroom staff when Zimbabwe qualified for the Nations Cup finals in Tunisia.
Gumbo had a hand in the Warriors’ qualification at the 2006 edition when he inherited the team from Chidzambwa before passing on the baton to Charles Mhlauri.
The Warriors coach also pointed out that qualification for the finals could be a turning point in the careers of some of the players.
“The guys know what the whole nation is expecting from them and we cannot expect any complacency from them.
“This is a do-or-die match and they know what it means.
“They know we have to do anything to win this game,” he said.
Angola have celebrated players like Djalma who plays in Turkey and Manucho who was once on the payroll of Manchester United but Gumbo said the Warriors will not be fazed by the quality of the opposition.
“I know that Angola have a lot of good players but we will not focus on the individuals.
“We might concentrate on one player and another one might surprise us.
“So we are planning for the whole team,” said Gumbo.
Gumbo said it had not been an easy task to come up with his final 18 players from the 30 players who were in the squad.
“To be fair and frank, the guys are now prepared to work.
“It had been tough to make a final decision on the 18 players but I have to look at the merits and explain to the players,” he said.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister, Morgan Tsvangirai has added his voice to the growing support for the Warriors ahead of their match against Angola.
In a statement yesterday, Tsvangirai urged the whole nation to rally behind the players and the technical team.
Tsvangirai said he was confident that the Warriors would bring home the result that would cheer the entire nation come tomorrow.
Online Reporter