NOW that Paulo Jorge Silva has been sacked, it is time to say goodbye to the Portuguese coach following the end of five months of drama on and off the field of play.
INSIDESPORT WITH MICHAEL KARIATI
Silva’s short association with Zimbabwean football was littered with many controversial incidents on the field of play, in the changing room and off the field — something which many will remember until the curtain comes down on the 2016 soccer programme.
It was a five-month period which also brought lessons to Dynamos — that a club does not just hire a foreign coach on the strength of the CV he presents, but that the club in question should also check the coach’s background.
This is to avoid the risk of hiring a former Shakhtar Donetsk groundsman on the assumption or belief that he was the team’s assistant or junior team coach.
Wherever he goes from here, or whether he decides to stay in Zimbabwe to hunt for another job, Silva has also learnt his lesson — that it is important to work as a team and also concentrate on the prime terms of employment than to focus on other issues.
To his credit, Silva will add on his CV that he coached Zimbabwe’s biggest and most popular football team — which is a fact — but he will surely not mention the duration of his stay at the 1998 CAF Champions League finalists or the games he played and the points he picked.
Under Silva, it was saddening to see Dynamos so inept, so lacking in creativity and firepower. A lot needs to be done to restore that self-belief in the players and also confidence in the millions of the club’s followers.
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Now that the Portuguese coach is gone, Lloyd Mutasa has been thrust into the hot seat while the club searches for a replacement, according to club chairman Kenny Mubaiwa.
Interestingly, Mutasa knows the history of Dynamos as he was also once a victim of the same circumstances that Silva found himself in.
Silva picked up five points from five games and anything less than what Silva managed will also see Mutasa once again at the exit door.
Mubaiwa has come out clear, that the club has a tradition of firing coaches who do not deliver. In 14 months, Dynamos have hired and fired three coaches —David Mandigora, Tonderayi Ndiraya, and now, Silva.
However, question marks are now being raised whether what is happening with coaches at DeMbare is still to do with the club’s work tradition. Observers have been quick to point out that since the departure of Kalisto Pasuwa, the club’s leadership does not seem to have a clue as to what sort of coach they need to guide the players.
With four consecutive league titles, Pasuwa’s shadow still looms large at the Glamour Boys and Mubaiwa and his team are battling to find a suitable replacement.
The warning to Mubaiwa and company is that hiring and firing at will, also reflects badly on the person who is doing the hiring. Let us support Manyuchi
The exciting news coming from the Zambian handlers of Zimbabwe World Boxing Council welterweight silver belt title-holder Charles Manyuchi is that they have proposed that Zimbabwe host Manyuchi’s next fight.
The sticking point, however, is that Zimbabwe should raise the close to $150 000 which is required to make the fight a reality. Where will this sort of money come from?
The reason why Manyuchi relocated to Zambia in the first place was that he could not find somebody willing to bankroll his fights, something which he found in neighbouring Zambia in the form of Oriental Quarries Boxing Promotions.
Although he is now an international icon, Manyuchi still finds himself without any financial backers in Zimbabwe, with the exception of Mr T 35, who provided him with a vehicle for use and sponsors the Manyuchi Fan Club — whose members travel regularly to Zambia to cheer Manyuchi when in action.
Now is the time for Zimbabweans to come together and compliment the efforts of Mr T35 and contribute to make sure that Manyuchi’s World Boxing Council silver belt first title defence takes place right here in Zimbabwe.
This is Manyuchi’s chance of a lifetime and Zimbabweans’ chance of a lifetime to watch their hero right on their doorsteps, and it cannot be allowed to slip away just like that.
What Manyuchi has done is a story worth telling to the next generations — our children and our grandchildren. But how will we explain exactly what happened without having watched the man in action? Zimbabweans must come together to make this fight a reality.
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