Kadewere’s rallying call . . . warns Warriors against complacency

By Godknows Matarutse

Highly rated Zimbabwe international forward Tinotenda Kadewere has warned his compatriots to guard against complacency in the make-or-break 2019 Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) qualifier against Congo on Sunday.

Sunday Chidzambwa’s charges host the Red Devils of Congo needing at least a draw in their last qualifying match to seal a place at the Afcon finals set for Egypt from June 21 to July 19, 2019.

A defeat will see the Warriors bow out of the tournament on the head-to-head basis should the other match between Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Liberia produce a winner.

And it is against this background that Kadewere has moved to warn his teammates that the Congolese are a formidable side and should not be taken lightly in Sunday’s match.

“Looking at the way the guys are performing at training I think everyone looks ready and psyched up for the match. We don’t want to take the game lightly, we know we are playing at home and the support that we going to have, it promises to be a massive game,” said Kadewere.

“We need to play to our full strength in order to get the result we need. We know we need one point to qualify but we should not dwell much on that. There is no room for us to relax. We need to approach the match with the right mentality and make sure we get the three points we need.

“We cannot afford to be complacent at this stage. These guys will obviously come here looking for a win because they are aware they still have a chance and they will not make it any easy for us. So we really need to work hard throughout the match.”

Kadewere, who is coming into the match at the back of some impressive performances for his French side Le Havre, is desperate to exorcise the demons of his last outing with the Warriors when they lost 1-0 to Liberia.

The 23-year-old, who was returning to action for the first time in over three months, having been sidelined by injury had a nightmare in fron of goal at the Samuel Kanyon Doe Sports Complex in Monrovia.

The Le Havre forward missed a number of good scoring opportunities that could have won the game for the Warriors before the Lone Star scored late in the second half through striker William Jebor.

“It’s one episode that I want to quickly forget. It was not a good day in the office for me but it’s now water under the bridge and I’m eager to make up for that.

Hopefully, if I’m given a chance I will rectify my mistakes,” said Kadewere.

Leicester City forward Admiral Muskwe is also excited and looking forward to his first senior debut for the Warriors.

“I want to do as well as I can,” Muskwe said.
The England-based striker believes his teammates are ready for this winner-takes-all encounter.

“These are the sort of games every player wants to play. The players are already pysched up, the motivation is already there.”

The Warriors were in high spirits yesterday after Harare fashion outlet 4 May dressed the squad including the technical team and the Zifa board ahead of their dinner with Zimbabwe President Emmerson Mnangagwa this evening at State House.

Sunday Chidzambwa’s charges head into Sunday’s match sitting at the top of Group G with eight points ahead of Liberia, who have seven points, while Democratic Republic of Congo and Congo are on six and five points respectively. DailyNews