WARRIORS coach Ian Gorowa has described the battle against Tanzania in the 2015 African Cup of Nations first round first leg football tie against Tanzania in Dar es Salaam on Sunday as tricky.
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The Warriors went into camp on Monday night and started training yesterday at Gateway High School in Harare.
Gorowa said he was cautious as he prepared for the trip to Dar es Salaam. The Warriors gaffer said he could see from the 0-0 draw friendly match which they played against Tanzania last year that they were not an easy team.
“It’s a tricky match. We played against them last year in a friendly match which we drew 0-0 in our preparations for the Chan tournament. From that match you could see they are a good team,” Gorowa said.
“I am very wary of Tanzania. We are not taking them lightly, but playing away first gives us an advantage. We will try to get a result there and then try to win at home. I spoke to the Malawi coach after they played them in a friendly match and he gave me an insight about them.”
He also said it was a blessing in disguise that the match had been moved from Mbeya to Dar es Salaam as the altitude there was very high.
“It is difficult to play in the first two rounds. We have been on a downward spiral and we are paying the price for that, but this is one of the things we will try to rectify. We have got three phases to go through and hopefully we will be able to qualify. It’s also a blessing in disguise that the match has been moved from Mbeya and that Caf did not approve it as a venue for the match because the altitude is very high there,” Gorowa said.
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Meanwhile, the Kaizer Chiefs duo of Kingston Nkatha and Willard Katsande did not train with the rest of the squad during the first session in the morning yesterday with Nkatha reported to be injured while Katsande was still travelling and was expected to join the rest of his teammates later.
Cape Town Ajax striker Simba Sithole limped off at training yesterday after picking up an injury and is now certain to miss the trip to Tanzania while Bantu Rovers midfielder Nqobizitha Masuku, who had received his first call-up, will also miss the clash due to injury.
Defender Milton Ncube also missed the morning training session after he was excused to collect his passport which he had submitted after applying for a visa. “Kingston Nkatha is injured and is no longer coming, but we are still expecting Willard Katsande. He is driving and we are still expecting him to join others at training. Ncube said he was going to the embassy to collect his passport and should join others as well,” team manager Shariff Mussa said.
Gorowa had named a 22-man squad for the trip to Tanzania with the heroes of the African Nations Championship tournament in South Africa, where Zimbabwe finished a credible fourth, constituting the biggest number. He had called up 16 home-based players and six South Africa-based players.
The second leg has been set for Harare between May 30 and June 2 with the winner of the two-legged encounter facing either Sudan or Mozambique in the next round.
Should the Warriors beat Tanzania, they will book a place in Group F, which has neighbours Zambia, Cape Verde and Niger.
The Warriors last made an appearance at the continental soccer showcase in Egypt 2006 Afcon finals. The team is expected to leave for Tanzania on Friday.
