The Sunday Mail
IT’S a measure of how far the Warriors have transformed themselves into a football force in Africa in the past four years that they broke new ground last year when they were shortlisted for the Confederation of African Football’s Best Team of the Year award for 2018.
It is the first time that the Warriors have been rated so highly by CAF’s panel of experts.
Sunday Chidzambwa’s men, who stand on the threshold of qualifying for the African Cup of Nations needing to avoid defeat against Congo-Brazzaville at the National Sports Stadium today, were named alongside the quintet of Madagascar, Guinea Bissau, Kenya, Mauritania and 2016 winners Uganda for the award.
The Warriors might have lost the award, at a ceremony will be held on January 8 next year in Senegal, but their inclusion among the top six performing nations was an endorsement of the progress they have made.
Zimbabwe had a brilliant run earlier on and could have been among the first teams to seal their place at the finals, with at least two games to spare, but they could not make good of the opportunity before them when they drew against DRC at home before losing away to Liberia.
It was the only time they failed to win in the campaign.
While their critics had been quick to only focus on the reverse they suffered in Monrovia, it is also a fact that few had given skipper Knowledge Musona and his troops a chance to come out of their visits to Congo in Brazzaville and DRC in Kinshasa unscathed.
Among their high points during last year, the Warriors surprised many when they went to DRC and beat the group favourites in their own backyard before coming back home where they settled for a share of the points at the National Sports Stadium.
ZIFA said the recognition of the Warriors by CAF showed the progress they have made.
“Congratulations to the Warriors for being nominated among six contenders for ‘Men’s National Team of the Year’ 2018 CAF Awards ceremony to be held on 8 January 2019 in Senegal,” tweeted ZIFA.
