Story by Lawrence Trusida, Sports Editor
STAND-in Warriors coach, Simon Marange believes his young squad needs more time together to produce results after they played out to a goalless draw against Mauritius in a 2025 COSAFA Cup Group B match in Bloemfontein, South Africa, this Wednesday.
Zimbabwe, fielding a developmental side with an average age of 20, shared the spoils with Mauritius in their first match of the regional tournament, as the team builds towards the 2028 Olympic Qualifiers set for next year.
With just one training session under their belt, stand-in coach, Simon Marange believes his charges acquitted themselves well.
“We would have loved to win, but we are not magicians. Remember, we had just one training session before this match, and the understanding was not there, the cohesion was lacking, and that was to be expected. However, we have a good side. In moments, you saw how dangerous this team can be, and with more time, we can improve our general play and set pieces,” he said.
Zimbabwe are third with a single point, the same as Mauritius, while Mozambique lead the group with three points after shocking hosts, South Africa one-nil in the tournament opener.
The group winners will progress to the semi-finals of the competition.
Meanwhile, substantive Warriors coach Michael Nees, who is leading another group of players, mainly established national team players, believes the friendly matches in Morocco will be more of team integration.
“We will use the matches to integrate the new players, we will play with a completely new midfielder and we want to give everyone enough chance,” he said.
Zimbabwe takes on Burkina Faso this Friday before battling Niger on Tuesday, with the two international friendlies set for Morocco.
