United States-based goalkeeper Tatenda Mkuruva’s anticipated return into the national team appears to have hit a snag after he was ruled out of the back-to-back Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) qualifiers against African champions Algeria due to a spike in new Covid-19 infections in that country.
BY MUNYARADZI MADZOKERE
Defender Tendayi Jirira, who turns out for Detroit City, has also been affected by the travel restrictions as a result of the situation obtaining in the US.
More than 132 700 new cases were announced across the US on Friday with the country also reporting more than 1 000 deaths for the fourth straight day.
The two Zimbabwean players needed to be cleared by the US government to travel because of the coronavirus regulations and were yet to get approval yesterday.
Jirira was also primed to make a debut for the Warriors against Algeria.
However, most of the focus had been on the return of Mkuruva to the national team fold following a brilliant season in which he made the National Independent Soccer Association league team of the year playing for Michigan Stars.
Mkuruva joined the Detroit-based American third-tier league side in 2019 from Buildcon in Zambia.
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His performances were enough to convince new Warriors coach Zdravko Logarusic to call the former Dynamos shot stopper who was the country’s number one at the Gabon Afcon in 2017.
Zifa general manager for national teams Wellington Mpandare said they had given up hope on the two players making the trip for the matches against Algeria.
“There is no clearance yet for Mkuruva and Jirira because the country (the US) is currently on auto-pilot due to the upsurge in new Covid-19 cases. It has made it difficult to obtain a clearance for the players as well as make travel arrangements for them to come for the Afcon qualifiers,” Mpandare told StandardSport.
“As it stands, chances of these two players making the trip to Zimbabwe are next to nil. We have to accept the fact that they are not going to make it. But the good thing is that 24 players were called into camp so the coaches anticipated that there could be a problem of this sort,” Mpandare added.
Mkuruva is one of the three goalkeepers called up by Logarusic alongside the current first choice Elvis Chipezeze, who plays for Baroka in South Africa, and Talbert Shumba, who recently signed for Zambian Super League side Nkana.
On the other hand, Jirira was primed to fight for a starting jersey against the likes of Jimmy Dzingai, Alec Mudimu, Jordan Zemura, Teenage Hadebe, Divine Lunga, Tendayi Darikwa and Adam Chicksen.
A number of players including the South Africa-based trio of Ovidy Karuru, Lunga and Chipezeze are already in camp as well as red-hot striker Prince Dube, who plies his trade in Tanzania, and Dynamos’ King Nadolo.
Moldova-based defender Mudimu was expected to land in the country yesterday while Shumba is scheduled to arrive today.
The bulk of the Europe-based players are expected in the country in the next two days with the team set to leave for Algeria on Tuesday.
Zimbabwe play Algeria in the first match on Thursday in Algiers before returning home to the National Sports Stadium for the reverse fixture the following Monday.
