If the Warriors thought being grounded in Harare was enough horror, they had not seen anything yet.
REPORT BY MICHAEL MADYIRA
Zimbabwe might be forced to field two goalkeepers in tonight’s World Cup qualifier against Guinea after failing to secure enough seats for the 14 players who made it to Senegal en route Conakry.
The available 13 seats were taken by 11 players, coach Klaus-Dieter Pagels and his assistant Lloyd Mutasa while the rest of the contingent is expected in Conakry, before kickoff. The team also had a nightmarish experience yesterday after utility player Hardlife Zvirekwi lost his passport during a brief stopover in Nairobi, Kenya. Zvirekwi was most likely to start and this further trimmed down an already depleted 15-man squad.
Zvirekwi was stranded and frantic efforts by the Zimbabwean Embassy in Nairobi were being made to help him return home.
In a horrible week where they were still licking the wounds from the 4-2 home defeat by Egypt last Sunday, the Warriors left for Guinea without the injured trio of chief striker Knowledge Musona, attacking linkman Ovidy Karuru and defender Partson Jaure.
Khama Billiat and Matthew Rusike were ruled out earlier in the week, also due to injury.
Initially scheduled to leave the country on Thursday afternoon, Zifa was battling to secure air tickets for the team, which only managed to depart at 2am yesterday and were expected in Conakry at 9:15 pm the same day.
- Chamisa under fire over US$120K donation
- Mavhunga puts DeMbare into Chibuku quarterfinals
- Pension funds bet on Cabora Bassa oilfields
- Councils defy govt fire tender directive
Keep Reading
It was a nightmarish week largely due to Zifa’s bungling as the Warriors also had to endure being chucked out of Pandhari Lodge on Friday, as well as battling to get transport to and fro their training venues.
Zifa needed US$184 000 for the Guinea trip, but only managed to raise US$100 000.
The association’s chief executive officer Jonathan Mashingaidze said the Football Trust tasked to raise funds for the Warriors was overwhelmed by the two successive matches played within seven days.
“Hosting Egypt gobbled US$234 000 and this drained our coffers. If there is no government to help us, we cannot go it alone. President Cuthbert Dube usually bails us out but this time he is away and I cannot comment on that if he is not around, everything stops functioning,” said Mashingaidze.
On Friday, Pagels sounded a man slowly losing patience and it would not be a surprise to see him throwing in the towel immediately after returning from Guinea.
“I am at home right now. I do not know what time we are leaving,” said Pagels then.
It has also emerged that players had threatened not to fulfill the Egypt match due to outstanding allowances they are owed.
Away from the circus, the Warriors return to Conakry’s September 8 Stadium after five years.
Their last visit to Guinea was in June 2008 under Brazilian coach Valinhos in a World Cup qualifier Group 2 opening match which ended in a goalless draw.
Interestingly, the two sides’ past meetings were all in World Cup qualifiers, with the other two visits to Conakry recording similar 3-0 losses in 1993 and 2000.
In six previous meetings between the two sides, Zimbabwe has only managed one win which came in September 1993 and Guinea has triumphed on three occasions, while the other two match were draws.
What compounds the Warriors’ mission in Conakry is the fact that the West Africans are still in the race for Brazil 2014 and are desperate for three points.
Placed second in Group G, Guinea are five points behind leaders Egypt who have 12 points.
The Sly Nationale’s 6-1 hammering of Mozambique last Sunday could be scary to the Warriors who are however already out of contention for the World Cup.
From the squad that faced Guinea in the 1-0 defeat at the National Sports Stadium in June last year, only two players, Archford Gutu and Denver Mukamba, made it to Conakry. Guinea’s Stuttgart forward Ibrahima Traoré who scored in that match was also on target against Mozambique and appears to scare Pagels who speaks glowingly of him.