The Sunday News
Mehluli Sibanda and Fungai Muderere, Sports Reporters
ENDOWED with several hallmarks of a defensive player, a superior ball winning ability, vision, composure, an exceptional first touch and balance, you name it, Aston Villa midfield enforcer Marvelous Nakamba today finds himself in an unpleasant predicament that was experienced by ex-Warriors captain Benjani Mwaruwari way back in 2006.
Fourteen years ago, Mwaruwari’s Portsmouth had to produce one of the greatest last-day English Premier Soccer League (EPL) relegation escapes when Harry Redknapp’s boys secured survival with a 2-1 win at Wigan Athletic to send West Brom and Birmingham City out of the EPL. Today, Nakamba’s Aston Villa camp is in dire need of that dramatic win at a time when the self-titled “greatest league in the world” has been a bastion of quality, excitement, controversy and emotion with the drama at the bottom of the table having proved more alluring than events at the top.
Norwich City have already been relegated and two more will follow them this afternoon. Bournemouth and Watford appear to be headed for the EPL exit door after Aston Villa’s shock 1-0 win over Arsenal last Tuesday got them out of the cellar.
Dean Smith’s Villa men looked certain to go down but the victory over Gunners changed the complexion of the relegation battle as Nakamba and his teammates climbed out of the bottom three. A win against West Ham United will guarantee Nakamba’s camp another season in the English top-flight. Villa can actually afford to lose and still survive depending on how other results pan out this afternoon. If Arsenal beat Watford and Bournemouth fail to secure three points against Everton, the Claret and Blue will be safe no matter what happens at the London Stadium.
Mwaruwari said he was fully aware of the kind of mental pressure that Nakamba has been going through hence his decision to join hordes of Zimbabwe’s football crazy family in prayer, hankering for a marvellous Villa relegation escape on survival Sunday.
“In 2006, while I was still with Portsmouth, I experienced such a relegation predicament. It’s a painful experience but I’m happy to say we managed to survive the chop when it was little expected. As a result, I know the kind of pressure that Nakamba has been subjected to,” said Mwaruwari.
He added: “I have continuously been in touch with Nakamba telling him that he must hang in there, remain focused, enjoy his game. If they are meant to be relegated it will happen. I am confident that they will survive the chop and I join all the Zimbabweans in prayer for Aston Villa’s win over West Ham. However, while it’s my hope and prayer that they survive, I challenge Nakamba and his teammates to grab the win by force.”
Posting on microblogging site Twitter after their triumph over Arsenal in a match where he came on as a second-half replacement for Conor Hourihane, the Njube-bred Nakamba acknowledged how important the victory was and rallied his teammates ahead of their final game of the season against the Hammers.
“What a massive win for the team and our fans. Nothing is impossible, there are ways that lead to everything. Our focus now turns to the weekend,” wrote the ex-Bantu Rovers player.
With the vast riches and global profile offered by the EPL, staying in the league has obviously been the main priority for Nakamba, which means failure to do so this afternoon could signal financial disaster for the Villa family.
