Mapeza heaps praises on Ndiraya

Sport
Norman Mapeza

FC Platinum gaffer Norman Mapeza has heaped praises on Simba Bhora head coach Tonderai Ndiraya for assembling what he says is the best squad in the league.

Mapeza said he was impressed by the quality of players that Ndiraya lured to the newly-promoted premiership side.

The two sides, Simba Bhora and FC Platinum, are set to face-off in the season opener at the National Sports Stadium tomorrow, and Mapeza is wary of the threat that his men face.

But what gives him confidence is how his team performed last weekend when they beat Bulawayo Chiefs to claim the Castle Challenge Cup.

“We are facing a very good side, we know what they have been doing in the pre-season," Mapeza said.

“For me, they are one of the best-assembled teams in the league at the moment. We will face them when we go to Harare.

“What I hope for is that we maintain the same hunger and desire which we had when we played in the Castle Challenge Cup.”

Mapeza said Ndiraya has assembled an experienced side which contains players who know each other very well.

“Most of the guys who had the team promoted are no longer there. If you look at it, most of the guys who left Dynamos went to join them.

“They joined coach Ndiraya, so it’s not going to be easy because the majority of them know what he wants.

 “It’s going be tricky, but if it were the guys who got the team promoted, we could have found a way to make it work. We have to raise our game.”

It is early days but looks like the Mapeza-coached side will be the team to beat again this season.

The former Warriors skipper added Jarrison Selemani, Perfect Chikwende and Misheck Ngwenya to his team.

So far Selemani seems to be the man to watch after an inspired performance in the Castle Challenge Cup.

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