SUNDAY Chidzambwa begins his second tenure as Zimbabwe football coach in the African Nations Championship against South Africa in Johannesburg on Sunday.
The African Nations Championship is a tournament for locally-based players only.Chidzambwa’s appointment has widely been seen as a fire-fighting strategy by the under-fire Zimbabwe Football Association (Zifa). By reappointing Chidzambwa, a populist option due to his links with the popular Dynamos Football Club and previous achievements with the national side, Zifa were seen as trying to pacify critics who were calling for a wholesale cleansing of the organisation.Critics of Chidzambwa say he is a quick-fix solution because he is a result-oriented coach, and therefore not the appropriate choice since Zimbabwe will only play their next competitive matches in 2011.Chidzambwa is being assisted by Shooting Stars coach Joey Antipas. lMeanwhile, outgoing coach Jose Georgini Claudei, known as Valinhos in football circles, is still battling to get his outstanding salary from Zifa. Zifa president Wellington Nyatanga has admitted that his association owes Valinhos “a substantial amount of money” but is struggling to obtain the foreign currency to pay him.“We will settle with him as soon as we get the forex,” Nyatanga said.Valinhos has since appealed to the Brazilian ambassador to Zimbabwe, Raul de Taunay, to intervene.“I have tried several times but still I get empty promises and all I am saying is pay me and I go,” Valinhos said.“There is a new coach now to take care of the national team and I no longer have a job here. If I remain until December then I will need a letter from Zifa that I will take to Fifa for intervention.”In the event that Valinhos take the labour case to Fifa, the world football governing body might withhold development grants meant for Zifa and pay up the former Zimbabwe coach.Zimbabwe’s football ties with Brazil could also be strained.“I do not want to go to Fifa because the effects could be bad but I have no option,” Valinhos added.He said he is prepared to return to Zimbabwe if the administration of the game improves.“A lot of things are not right here, from the players’ attitude, the administrators who are not doing things transparently and lack of support by the corporate world.But one thing I like is that there are great supporters and eager and talented players. There are good people here and one day maybe its possible I can come back,” Valinhos said.
By Enock Muchinjo
