The Sunday Mail
Makomborero Mutimukulu in CAIRO, Egypt
GETTING hold of Lawrence Mhlanga was a difficult task for Warriors manager Wellington Mpandare.
An injury that ruled out Tafadzwa Kutinyu from the ongoing Africa Cup of Nations tournament meant that a replacement needed to be flown into Cairo at the earliest possible moment. Mhlanga, the FC Platinum man, was that replacement but calling his mobile number brought no luck.
“The phone was off because of this load shedding so the manager ended up calling my father, who in turn delivered the message to my brother,” revealed the 25-year-old defender.
“I was at our local shops in Bulawayo and was surprised to see my brother running at me shouting, “Leave what you are doing, you are needed in Egypt. The team is short of players.”
“Initially I told him to shut up so that l could concentrate on the game of pool that l was playing… I mean what would a guy who has never been in the Warriors camp know about the national team’s goings on? I had no reason to take him seriously.
“However, he kept on insisting and I ended up going home, where my father confirmed the news. It all happened so fast and continues to happen fast because just a few hours after arriving in Egypt, I was warming up with the rest of the team, getting ready for the first 2019 Afcon game.”
Mhlanga, who was also part of the Warriors team that did duty at the 2017 Afcon finals in Gabon, feels for Kutinyu who is still here and walking with the aid of clutches.
“It’s really unfortunate, Coutinho (Kutinyu) is a good guy and deserved to play at such a tournament but such is football, these injuries are part of the game.
“When I saw him the first thing he did was joke that I had to pay him since his injury created room for me. I do wish him a speedy recovery,” he said.
