The Sunday News
NATIONAL Under-23 coach Kalisto Pasuwa is expected to be confirmed as the Zimbabwe Warriors coach ahead of the 2017 African Cup of Nations qualifiers scheduled for June.
While Zifa had made appointments for all national teams last year they left the post of Warriors coach vacant when they resolved to resort to juniors teams as a way of tapping into the grassroots.
Impeccable sources close to Zifa revealed that Pasuwa will take charge before the end of this month as the country brace for the qualifiers of the 2017 Afcon finals that will be held in Gabon.
“He is the best man to take over the senior national team and after his success with the Under-23, we are comfortable giving him that chance to lead the Warriors in our campaign to get to Afcon,” said a source at Zifa.
According to the sources Pasuwa would be given the liberty to choose players of his own choice, and that selection would not be restricted to the Under-23 players.
The former Dynamos coach led the Young Warriors to the 2015 All-Africa Games football finals in Brazzaville, Congo in September after eliminating four-time record-holders Cameroon on Sunday in Yaoundé, Cameroon.
The team drew 1-1 with the Indomitable Cubs in the second leg after winning the first leg 1-0 in Harare to progress 2-1 on aggregate.
This will be the third time for the Warriors to make an appearance at the continental Games. They secured a place at the 1991 Games where they finished fourth, and in 1995 when Zimbabwe hosted the event.
Efforts to get a comment from Pasuwa were fruitless, while no official response could be obtained from Zifa.
However, this publication has it in good authority that the Zifa Board would meet later this month, where a decision on Pasuwa’s appointment would be finalised.
The country’s football governing body is unlikely to bring in another foreign coach any time soon following the debacles that had surrounded the appointments of Valinhos and Tom Saintfiet.
Following the announcement of the 2017 Afcon draw, Sports, Arts and Culture Minister Andrew Langa urged Zifa to field a strong side and not rely on the Young Warriors.
“We need the country to prepare well and field a strong side that will have the potential of bringing smiles to the people.
“The youngsters played very well against Cameroon in the African Games qualifier but I personally don’t think they can stand the heat against foreign legion of stars who will obviously be recalled by their associations for the qualifiers,’’ said Langa then.
“We can’t change our football fortunes that way; this is a tournament for men, not boys.”
Zimbabwe open their campaign with an away clash against Malawi on the weekend of 12 to 14 June, followed by a home tie against Guinea on the weekend of 4 to 6 September.
The qualifiers will then take a rest before resuming on the weekend of 25-28 March 2016 with the Warriors travelling to Swaziland and host the country a few days later.
The Flames of Malawi visit Zimbabwe on the weekend of 3-5 June before the Warriors wrap up their campaign with an away trip to Guinea in September 2016.
Ian Gorowa is the last Warriors coach and was relieved of his duties following a disastrous campaign that saw the country crush out of the 2015 Afcon preliminary round.
