IF one is asked about what has made Sunday Chidzambwa the successful football coach he is today, the answer would be: It is his belief in tried and tested players, and not in skill.
By with MICHAEL KARIATI
Unlike young talented and skilful players who take time to deliver, Chidzambwa placed his faith in players who brought immediate results, players who made the fans happy by winning matches, instead of appeasing the fans with entertaining play.
Some even described Chidzambwa’s type of play as “boring”, but they still went home happy as Mhofu’s teams grinded out the results that brought points and trophies, but not entertainment.
Chidzambwa is widely regarded as the most successful coach in Zimbabwean football after leading the Warriors to their first Africa Cup of Nations finals in 2004 and Dynamos to the Caf Champions League final in 1998.
In 1999, Mhofu also guided the Warriors to their first ever qualification to the African Nations Championships (Chan), and as technical director of Dynamos, Chidzambwa also led DeMbare to the semi-finals of the Caf Champions League in 2008 before losing out 4-2 to Cotonsport of Cameroon.
Chidzambwa also holds a record three Cosafa Castle Cup titles with the Warriors which he won in 2003, 2009, and 2017 with the coach that comes next being South Africa’s Ephraim Shakes Mashaba, who has two titles won in 2002 and 2016.
In fact, the Chidzambwa family has four Cosafa Castle Cup titles in their household, but the fourth one does not belong to Sunday but his younger brother Misheck, who was the first to win the Cosafa Cup with the Warriors in 2000.
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In fact, the honour in the Chidzambwa family does not begin and end with the Cosafa Cup as Misheck was the captain of the Zimbabwe national team when the Warriors won the East and Central Africa Challenge Cup with a 2-0 victory over Kenya at Rufaro Stadium in 1985.
Those who follow Chidzambwa will testify that Sunday’s trademark over the years has been his faith in hardworking, disciplined, and experienced players, and not in talented and skilful players most of whom lack discipline.
Part of Sunday’s 2004 Africa Cup of Nations team which he took to Tunisia looked like Lazarus Muhoni, Leo Kurauzvione, Kaitano Tembo, Harlington Shereni, Dumisani Mpofu, Esrom Nyandoro, Wilfred Mugeyi, Adam Ndlovu, Tinashe Nengomasha, Dickson Choto, George Mbwando and Bekithemba Ndlovu, who are not the sort of players one would call talented, but in fact, hard workers who win matches.
Before that, was his 1998 Dynamos Caf Champions League team which reached the final of the continental tournament after accounting for Tunisia’s Etoile du Sahel, Nigeria’s Eagle Cement, and Ghana’s Hearts of Oak before losing out 4-2 on aggregate to ASEC Mimosas of the Ivory Coast.
That team too was made up largely of grafters like Tembo, Shereni, Kalisto Pasuwa, Memory Mucherahowa, Makwinji Soma-Phiri, Vint Fulawo and Masimba Dinyero.
Gradually though, Chidzambwa appears to be changing his formula. He has of late been taking an interest in emerging young talent. Although he still has kept his love for tried and tested players, the majority of Chidzambwa’s teams today are largely young players.
Chidzambwa is in Zambia with the Warriors for the four-team tournament in which the Warriors were expected to face Angola yesterday in the fight for third place after losing out in the semi-finals to the hosts, Chipolopolo.
Although he has a few old guards in his team like Ovidy Karuru, Silas Songani, Abbas Amidu and George Chigova, the team is largely young talent such as Adam Chicksen, Butholezwe Ncube, Aleck Mudimu, Marshall Munetsi, Divine Lunga, Teenage Hadebe, Cliff Moyo, Talent Chawapihwa, Takabva Mawaya and Jimmy Dzingai.
The same composition also made up his 2017 Cosafa Castle Cup winning team. Although there were experienced players in the form of Eric Chipeta, Chigova, Karuru and Ocean Mushure, Chidzambwa gave most of his places to exciting young talent, Leeroy Mavhunga, Bukhosi Sibanda, Prince Dube, Chawapihwa, Nyasha Mpofu, Innocent Mucheneka, Takabva Mawaya and the unknown Blessing Majarira, who came from then first division side Herentals.
Chidzambwa has made it clear that he is experimenting with the young players as he builds his team for the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers against Congo DR, Congo Brazzaville, and Liberia.
The question is: Will Chidzambwa make it again, this time, with his newly-found brigade of youngsters?
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