Online Reporter
Langton Nyakwenda
Zimpapers Sports Hub
FORMER Dynamos skipper Steven Alimenda is confident his ex-club will survive relegation but he has one piece of big advice for the troubled giants.
Dynamos have a tough date against Scottland at Rufaro tomorrow.
“Yes, the team is ailing and there are a lot of issues at the club but now is not the time to point fingers.
“It’s time for the Dynamos family to unite and fans should fill up Rufaro on Saturday and prove that DeMbare are still the Harare giants,” Alimenda told Zimpapers Sports Hub.
Alimenda won two league titles with Dynamos in 2013 and 2014.
He is now involved in junior development and runs the Alimenda Steven Academy in Glen Norah.
“Development starts at the lowest age but most of these clubs start at Under-17 or Under-19 level.
“There’s a need for PSL clubs to have junior teams from Under-9 so that the boys get proper technique at an early age and then grow within the system.
“The advantage of having a sound junior development structure is that you can rely on your products if you can’t compete on the transfer market.
“That was always the strength of these traditional giants back then. They attracted all the young and good players before polishing them into stars.”
Dynamos, Highlanders and CAPS United have in recent years been bullied on the transfer market by emerging teams like defending champions Simba Bhora, FC Platinum, Ngezi Platinum and Manica Diamonds.
The arrival of Scottland and MWOS had also thrown the giants further into the periphery.
“There are a lot of talented young boys out there especially in the rural areas and high density areas.
“The main problem is that most kids in these areas lack access to big platforms mainly because they don’t have the financial muscle.
“At my academy for example, we do not have proper equipment, sometimes we train with the wrong sizes of footballs, but we are still managing to produce good players,” said Alimenda.
