Former Zimbabwe international defender Harlington Shereni has expressed concern over the lack of experience in the Warriors squad set to compete at the AFCON finals in Cameroon.
Zimbabwe are scheduled to play Senegal in their opening match on Monday before they face Malawi four days after and then Guinea in their Group B final fixture.
Shereni predicted a tough tournament for coach Norman Mapeza and his 23-member squad.
“The problem we have with our team is a lot of guys are inexperienced hence this competition requires a lot of experience,” Shereni told Nehanda Radio.
The 46-year-old dreadlocked ex-Dynamos defender’s concern comes after the Warriors went without a number of their key players due to injuries and other reasons.
The injury list includes Villas’ Marvelous Nakamba, Stade Reims’ Marshall Munetsi and England based Brendan Galloway.
Former Warriors poster boy for the past decade, Khama Billiat retired from international football and Tendayi Darikwa excused himself from the squad owing to personal reasons.
This means of the selected 23-men squad, only seven players once featured for the national team at the AFCON finals and the remaining are debutants.
Meanwhile, speaking on the much anticipated tricky encounter versus the Lions of Teranga, the former Nantes, Strasbourg and Istres player highlighted that the Warriors require a positive result to boost their confidence in the competition.
“AFCON is a very difficult competition, to make things worse, we are playing our first game against one of the best teams in Africa, Senegal. We need to get a better result on this game to remain focused on the competition without any panic, but it won’t be an easy match,” Shereni added.
However, the veteran player bemoaned lack of enough preparations ahead of the rescheduled 2021 AFCON finals in Cameroon.
Ahead of the tournament, Zimbabwe played one preparatory match versus Sudan last Sunday which ended in a goalless draw. Nehanda Radio
So called experienced players were all knocked out at group stages.
Iye shereni almost cost us a game arovera shot Kuna keeper wake
Robert Washington Chiula – Rubbish, we are talking experience of what is ahead, and you are busy talking the past 🙄
Imbomirai makadadaro mukoma Shereni patiri pakaipa tozotaura time time
Experience vanotoiita ipapa kana vanayo vacho vaidhakisa zvinhu wani
The problem is even those so called experienced players they were costing too so just let them play in peace please 🙏 they have nothing to lose.
But thus how they will gain the experience kaa, how do u expect them to gain experience vasina kumbot… https://t.co/UPM5FgFZGZ
Haha ndezvake izvo anoda titambe tichitambisa vana Mshekwi here? Go young blood Go!!!
like he did paya
The experienced have performed dismally at all tournaments before. We better risk with these
They will not cost us anything because we expecting nothing to start with.
Him and his group were experienced and delivered nothing , stop waffling let these boys prove themselves against all odds
Collen Tafireyi quite unfortunate nhasi, ibhora. They will prove many wrong if they haven’t already paGame 1 irori ranhasi!
Experienced players r not hungry for glory.Let those guys market themselves and have that experience
They don’t expect to win but it’s a tournament they must represent
Zviya makazoitei ne experience yenyu?
Koimi ne experience yamaive navo makazosvika kupi zviya
Gerald Chabikwa haaa u cant compare the current crop to these players..whether they ddnt achieve anything they had great experience
Kali Magaya . Maybe this inexperienced might make us happy. Experienced as they were , they failed the first hurdle buddy
Gerald Chabikwa Never
Iye ne experience yavo vakaitei ..what notable achievements did they bring ..dololo ..ngavachembere vakatinyararira uko
What did you achieve yourself Mr Shereni? You get experience by doing.
Just to be there is a great achivement
He knows that today it will end in tears for the boys
That’s wy ane mavende vanhu avangangomurega akadero
Vakatisechesa naJJ Okocha vanaShereni mese murimo
Well said
That’s rubbish Mr Shereni
Experience yekudii , hatidi team dzaMhofu dzemaold horse
That’s where experience biggins