KALISTO Pasuwa’s future as coach of Dynamos plunged into uncertainty yesterday as the team’s executive was scheduled to meet for a review of the team’s performance following a spate of draws.
Report by Tawanda Tafirenyika
The champions were held to a 1-1 draw by hosts Shabanie at Maglas on Wednesday, their third successive draw in as many matches in the new campaign.
The results follow the champions’ exit in the African Champions League last Sunday when Dynamos fell 3-1 on aggregate to Birzetin of Tunisia in the first round.
It was the second successive unsuccessful campaign in Africa by Pasuwa.
On Wednesday, Patrick Khumbula thrust Dynamos into the lead with his second half strike on 60 minutes to give the champions hope, but their lead proved temporary as Shabanie Mine responded at the death with fullback Munyaradzi Kunyarimwe hitting a free kick with chilling accuracy to deny Dynamos maximum points.
The result sparked unrest in the Dynamos dressing room with the executive that had backed the coach seemingly losing their patience.
Pasuwa’s men had stuttered to a 1-1 draw against police outfit Black Mambas and were then held to another 1-1 draw by visiting Chicken Inn in their second match of the league campaign.
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And the latest draw at the hands of Shabanie left supporters and neutral observers wondering whether the team can repeat the feat achieved last season.
While it might still be too early to judge their pedigree, failure to collect maximum points against modest teams like Shabanie, Black Mambas and Chicken Inn is certainly not consistent with champions.
Dynamos chairman Keni Mubaiwa revealed to NewsDay yesterday that they would meet with the coach to give him a chance to clarify his position before making a decision.
He said they would only comment after the meeting.
“Everybody is worried by the team’s poor run and we have called for a meeting with the coach. We are still waiting for them to come back from Zvishavane and as soon as they arrive we will meet with him to hear his problems.
“If we fail to meet today (yesterday) we will meet tomorrow. We can’t make any decision without hearing what the coach’s problems are. We will only be able to comment on our position after that meeting,” Mubaiwa said.
The Zimbabwe champions remembered how to win when they edged Tunisian side CA Bizertin 1-0 in their African Champions League first round second leg clash at Rufaro Stadium courtesy of a late strike by midfielder Cliff Sekete, but still bowed out of the competition on a 3-1 aggregate defeat.
They had suffered a 3-0 loss in the reverse fixture.
The Glamour Boys had last won on February 17 when they defeated Lesotho Correctional Services 3-0 in the preliminary round first leg clash in Harare at Rufaro Stadium.
