The Sunday Mail
Online Reporter
ZIMBABWE international Tino Kadewere made his first start in a competitive match for Spanish La Liga side Real Mallorca, who beat lower league side Pontevedra 2-0 after extra time in a Copa del Rey round-of-32 tie on Wednesday night.
The 26-year-old Kadewere, who joined Mallorca on loan from Lyon in August, played 46 minutes before he was replaced by Korean striker Lee Kang-in.
The Zimbabwean striker is still adjusting to Spanish football after he made his eagerly awaited La Liga debut as a late substitute in a 0-2 loss against Getafe last week.
In that game, he came on in the 82nd minute to become the first Zimbabwean player to feature in the La Liga topflight.
He managed to impress Real Mallorca coach Javier Aguirre in those few minutes.
“He (Kadewere) is a boy with very good character and today we put him in a 4-4-2, a position that does not correspond to him because he is a striker or playmaker.
“But the little he did I think was in line with the game, neither for better nor for worse,” said Aguirre.
And on Wednesday night, Aguirre handed Kadewere his first start in a competitive match, before hauling off the Highfield-bred star at the start of the second half.
Kadewere is now expected to have more minutes when Mallorca host Real Valladolid in a La Liga match at the Mallorca Estadi on Saturday.
