The Sunday Mail
Langton Nyakwenda
MR COOL might as well be Knowledge Musona’s nickname.
As he stands on the threshold of greatness, the 28-year old Warriors skipper is refusing to get carried away.
Musona can become the third skipper to lead Zimbabwe to the Africa Cup of Nations finals if the hosts manage to avoid defeat against Congo Brazzaville at the National Sports Stadium this afternoon.
He could end the day as the newest member of a clique of the legendary Peter Ndlovu and Willard Katsande.
The iconic Ndlovu, undoubtedly the greatest warrior of all time, captained Zimbabwe to two Afcon finals in 2004 and 2006 before Katsande achieved the prestigious feat in 2017.
“Everyone knows what’s at stake, everyone knows what needs to be done, we will just do what we have been doing all along,” said Musona.
“I know there is history to be made, some individual feats to be achieved but my mind is on the Congo game. That’s only thing on my mind, not individual records.
“I know the magnitude of this game, the expectations from Zimbabweans and for now that is all I am thinking about,” added Musona when reminded about the possibility of him joining Ndlovu and Katsande in that elite group of Zimbabwean skippers.
Musona did not train at full throttle and may not last 90 minutes against Congo Brazzaville but the Sporting Lokeren striker insists there is no reason to be worried.
“It’s all about playing as a team, without pressure. Sometimes you do not have to talk about pressure in these kind of games.
“You just go out there and do what you can do, act according to the coach’s instructions and tactics,” he said.
Musona describes himself as a democratic captain.
“I would say I am a quiet person when outside the field but I am vocal once the match kicks off. However, it doesn’t necessarily mean that if you are the captain you have to talk every time,” he said.
“Football rules say only one person should wear the armband but if it was possible I think we would all wear the band because we are all leaders on the pitch.
“There are times when a player who is not wearing the armband tells you what to do and it works, it’s a team thing.
“It’s not only me who talks when we are in the dressing room before the match, we give each other chances to air our thoughts.
“We encourage each other, we sing and say ‘let’s go and do it boys, go and give 100 percent effort for the nation.”
The Aces Academy product was only a year old when Zimbabwe suffered that 1991 heartbreak at the hands of Congo Brazzaville at the National Sports.
The Warriors needed a win to qualify for the 1992 finals and led 2-1 until the dying minutes when Congo equalized and extinguished the nation’s hopes.
“I was just a year old when that happened,” Musona said with a chuckle.
“I have read about it, they (Congo) broke our hearts. We are thinking about it also, but history doesn’t count much in football nowadays.
“What you do on the field on the day is what counts. We learnt the hard way back in 1991 and it’s something that we don’t want to happen again.”
