THE Dynamos executive has called for a crisis meeting with the team’s technical team as they begin an inquest into team’s poor start to the Castle Premiership football season, amid unconfirmed reports that former championship-winning coach Norman Mapeza is being lined up to take over.
HENRY MHARA
Club chairman Keni Mubaiwa told NewsDay Sport yesterday that they had called coach Kalisto Pasuwa and his technical team for a showdown meeting, likely to be held this morning.
“We are not happy with the way things are going. Losing three games after six matches is unacceptable for a big club like us,” Mubaiwa said. “But we cannot rush to point fingers at each other at this moment. “We need to sit down with the technical team so that they can give us their side of the story.
“We should meet tomorrow [today], but it will depend on the other guys’ diaries. It could be tomorrow [today].”
The meeting comes after Dynamos lost 1-0 to Buffaloes at the National Sports Stadium on Sunday, their third league defeat in six matches and with fears growing that their season is already unravelling.
This was the second loss on the bounce for the league champions following another setback at Chapungu in midweek last week.
The defeat left Dynamos teetering at eighth place on the league table with nine points, three behind joint leaders Highlanders and ZPC Kariba.
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Pressure has piled on Pasuwa with his position appearing to be under serious threat.
Most of the team’s supporters are beginning to lose patience with the coach.
A section of them expressed their frustration at the team’s performance by pelting missiles at board chairman Bernard Marriot at the National Sports Stadium on Sunday.
Marriot had gone to the fans, housed in the eastern bay of the giant facility, to try and calm them following choruses of boos towards the players.
The supporters were equally relentless in their abuse of Pasuwa as he trudged off the pitch after the match.
On social networks, the anger has been palpable with only a few still sympathising with the coach.
However, Mubaiwa, who was this week reported to have fallen out with Pasuwa, has appealed for the fans to remain calm, saying it would be unwise to pull the trigger on the coach.
“It’s too early to even think of that. We were in a far worse position last season than we are right now. We have lost three matches so far,” Mubaiwa said.
“We are not happy with it, but it would be too early to press the panic button.
“In any case, we are just three points behind the team at the top of the table and we can be number one after the weekend matches.”
On his alleged fallout with Pasuwa, Mubaiwa said: “I only read about that in the newspapers. I don’t have any grudges with him.
“If I had any, I would have let him know. I’m not the kind of person who holds bitterness, especially with my subordinates.”
But while the Harare businessman painted a serene picture of the situation in the camp by backing Pasuwa, reports suggested the club’s board converged at an emergency meeting yesterday to review the team’s season so far with the coach’s future top of the agenda.
When quizzed about the meeting, Marriot professed ignorance.
“There is nothing like that. We did not hold any meeting today [yesterday] to discuss Pasuwa’s future. The only people who met today [yesterday] is the budget committee to discuss budget issues. “We have lost three matches, but it’s not yet a crisis.
“If we can call ours a crisis, what about those who have lost six games, but are sticking with their coach?” Marriot said, referring to city rivals Harare City who have lost all their matches so far this season. Other unconfirmed reports yesterday were linking former Warriors coach Mapeza to take over from Pasuwa.
Dynamos’ next league match is away to Shabanie Mine on Sunday, where they failed to win last season.
While the club’s board and executive is showing public sympathy for Pasuwa, the coach knows that a defeat in that match will not be tolerated and could see the trigger being pulled.
