It was an interesting game of football and one deserving to be called a cup final as two Zimbabwean heavyweight football clubs Lusaka Dynamos and Zesco United clashed on the pitch for Cup glory. The ABSA Cup is one that saw us witness a lot of drama and exciting football as the participating clubs gave their best but it all got down to two of the best clubs of the competition, but of course, there had to be only one winner.
Zimbabwe have already started their journey towards qualification for the 2022 FIFA World Cup tournament in Qatar. The journey to qualify for Qatar 2022 started for Zimbabwe in the first round of the African qualifiers for the tournament due to their low position in the FIFA Rankings. They were drawn against Somalia in the first round and were able to progress to the second round after a 3-2 aggregate win over the two legs played in 2019. Anwar Shakunda gave Somalia a 1-0 lead at home at the end of the first leg but Zimbabwe were able to respond in the second leg after a brief scare. Zimbabwe won the second leg 3-1 at home to secure passage into the next round. Marshall Munetsi, Admiral Muskwe and KhamaBilliat were the goalscorers for Zimbabwe, while Somalia got what proved to be mere consolation goal in the second leg through Omar Mohammed.
Zambia, Botswana, and Zimbabwe face uncertainties in their quest to secure a straight ticket to the AFCON finals as the Covid-imposed troubles and restrictions continue to linger on. British authorities have placed regulations and restrictions against passage into their country, and that may have a minor impact on the progress of the competition which has been slated to hold later this year.
The Zebras are expected to welcome The Warriors in Gaborone where they are to play their penultimate game of the qualifiers. The Warriors will then have to play at home against Chipolopolo just one week after, in the final round of games. (more…)
Aston Villa’s Zimbabwean midfielder Marvelous Nakamba has reiterated his desire to remain at Villa Park and fight for his place in the team. This comes after several reports have emerged about him potentially sealing a transfer away from the club because he is no longer needed by the manager.
Zimbabwe have put themselves in a good position to qualify for the 2022 African Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Cameroon after the latest set of qualifiers earlier this month. Matchday 3 & 4 games took place in November with the Zimbabweans facing holders Algeria in a double header in Group H of the qualifiers.
In Zimbabwe, football season is set to resume soon and when it does, Phunya Sele Sele might be without the first choice that they have for left-back. That is because Ronald Pfumbidzai, the Celtic defender from Bloemfontein might be stuck in the country. He being an international player from Zimbabwe, decided to come back to his home country after the games were suspended. With the pandemic paralyzing most games from March onwards, the borders between the neighboring countries and South Africa were also closed. This was one of the restrictions imposed for preventing the spread of the pandemic.
It could be sober reflection due to more than usual time to reflect during the lockdown that fueled the Stephen Keshi confessions. The late Nigerian coach has been dragged into ‘dirty deals’ scandal even when he cannot defend himself.
It started when 33-year old former Super Eagles forward Chinedu Obasi on Instagram Live revealed he was very heartbroken to have missed the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. He claimed he lost his spot in the final selection because he refused to pay a bribe. He had expected to have been selected based on his form at Schalke 04 in the German Bundesliga in the 2013/14 season. (more…)
Leicester City returned to winning ways as they put four goals past Aston Villa. Brendan Rodger’s side have only taken two points from their last four league outings and looking further back they have won just two matches in their last eight matches. A poor run of form that has seen the Foxes lose their grip in the race to UEFA champions league spot at the end of the season.
Before their poor run of form, they were the closest to Liverpool and were ahead of Manchester City. They are now 3rd in the league, 5 points ahead of Chelsea in fourth place and 4 points behind Pep Guardiola’s men in second place, albeit they have played a game more.
(more…)Other than Zimbabwe’s weird suspension from participating in the qualifiers of last year’s world cup in Russia, this year has been a relatively quiet one for Africa. The Super Eagles of Nigeria continue to be one of the continent’s flag bearers and the latest FIFA rankings saw them move four places to finish the year at 31st.
Zimbabwe has been able to punch higher than its weights in football and it one of the few remaining sources of national pride for the country. About 11 players from the top-flight of Mzansi have been called for Warriors and PSL continues offering proof that they are in the league and attracting the interest of other countries.
Joey Antipas, the coach of Zimbabwe has named ten players from the Premier Soccer League of South Africa in a provisional squad of 32 man team for the qualifiers of African Cup of Nations that is going to take place in the month of November.