Warriors take flight to Bloemfontein, eye redemption against Bafana Bafana

SOUTH AFRICA – The Zimbabwe Warriors have left Johannesburg for Bloemfontein, shifting their base ahead of a crucial World Cup qualifier match against arch rivals South Africa on Tuesday.

They departed Johannesburg on Sunday morning as they relocated to establish a new training camp in Bloemfontein where they will face off Bafana Bafana at Free State Stadium.

The Warriors are out to redeem themselves against a star-studded Bafana Bafana side following a disappointing 2-0 defeat to Lesotho at Orlando Stadium this past Friday.

First half goals from Rethabile Rasethuntsa and Jane Thabantso were enough for Lesotho to secure a shocking victory against Zimbabwe.

The 2-0 loss marked Zimbabwe’s first defeat in the ongoing 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers.

Previously, Zimbabwe had managed to salvage draws in their opening matches against Rwanda (0-0) and Nigeria (1-1) respectively.

Following the humiliating loss against Lesotho, Warriors interim coach, Jairos Tapera, expressed his disappointment.

Tapera bemoaned defensive errors and missed opportunities by his forwards.

He told the media after the match: “I’m very disappointed with the result. We conceded two soft goals due to defensive blunders.

“We missed a lot of chances. “I’m not disrespecting Lesotho, but we were supposed to beat them had we not missed a lot of chances.

“But at the end of the day, it’s a game of football, we now focus onto our next match (against Bafana Bafana).”

The Warriors must beat South Africa if they hope to keep their World Cup qualification dreams alive.

Currently, they occupy the bottom spot in the group standings with only two points after three matches, three behind current log leaders Lesotho.

The Group C is still wide open with Lesotho leading with five points, followed by Rwanda with four points.

Benin sits in third place with four points, while South Africa are fourth with the same number of points, and Nigeria are fifth with three points.