SOCCER: Andrew Muchineripi
ZIMBABWE stand alone among the leading football teams in Africa as the only one never to reach the biennial Nations Cup finals. This weekend the Warriors have another opportunity to erase 17 years of frustration when they travel to Angola needing a draw to secure a ticket to the tournament in Burkina Faso next year.
Securing even one point will not be easy, though, as Angola go through if they win and are a match for any African nation in the Citadela Stadium, a rare exhibit of modern architecture amid the largely decaying suburbs of Luanda.
When good away results are few, the last information Zimbabweans wish to receive is that their opponents have won the six previous qualifying matches by scoring 12 goals and conceding none. While the monthly African rankings from world controlling body Fifa sometimes pose more questions than they answer, it is no surprise to see Angola lying 10th ,one place behind the stars of Nigeria. The team is a mixture of players from Luanda clubs Petro Atletico and Primeiro Agosto (who face Orlando Pirates in the African Champions League next month) and professionals with Portuguese first and second division sides.
Among this squad, two need no introduction to Zimbabwe as Antonio “Paulao” Alves and Fabrice “Akwa” Maieco snatched the goals which secured victory when the countries met at the same venue last November in a World Cup qualifier.
There have been two meetings in Harare since, the World Cup encounter finishing goalless and the Nations Cup tie ending in a controversial victory for the home side through a Wilfred Mugeyi goal off a retaken penalty kick.
While Angola also retain an outside chance of reaching the World Cup, Zimbabwe are out of the running and international oblivion beckons for at least 12 months should they fail on Sunday afternoon. Coach Ian Porterfield, who guided Zambia to the 1994 Nations Cup final but has had considerably less success further south, recalled Peter Ndlovu, the skilful winger transferred from Coventry to Birmingham City this month. Ndlovu, labelled the Bulawayo Bullet due to his exceptional pace, has missed many matches through injury, pay disputes and disillusionment with Zimbabwe football authorities.
Even veteran goalkeeper Bruce Grobbellaar wants to be released from an English match- rigging trial in which he is one of the four accused so he can guard the Zimbabwe goalmouth.
After so many heartaches and near misses, perhaps luck will finally favour Zimbabwe. However, the smart money must be on Angola winning narrowly and becoming one of the 16 finalists.
Hosts Burkina Faso and defending champions South Africa qualify automatically, and they will be joined by the winners and runners-up in seven qualifying groups of varying strength and size. Ghana, Morocco, Cameroon, Togo and Zambia secured places in the penultimate qualifying round and Tunisia and Guinea joined them this week when cash- strapped Sierra Leone were disqualified for not honouring fixtures.
That leaves 14 nations – Angola, Zimbabwe, Algeria, Ivory Coast, Mali, Egypt, Senegal, Gabon, Namibia, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Liberia, Tanzania, Malawi, Mozambique – chasing seven places. The list includes kings and commoners with three-time champions Egypt chasing a record 16th appearance while Namibia, with a football population of less than 8 000 players, seek a place among the elite for the first time.
Egypt must defeat perennial whipping boys Ethiopia in the Mediterranean city of Alexandria and hope Morocco justify their tag as the No 1 national team in Africa by overcoming Senegal at home. Namibia face a similar situation to Zimbabwe with a win or draw in Gabon taking them through, while a defeat will see their opponents sneak in after battling for most of the campaign.
Another head-on collision features Mozambique and Malawi in Maputo with the home team needing maximum points to overtake the visitors and qualify for their second consecutive finals.