BY HENRY MHARA EMMANUEL Jalai and Alex Orotomal have handed Dynamos an injury boost after returning to training this week ahead of their league match against ZPC Kariba at the National Sports Stadium tomorrow.
The pair missed their side’s clash against Tenax last week although their absence was barely felt as the Harare giants cruised to a 3-1 win.
Right-back Jalai was down with a groin problem while big Nigerian striker Orotomal had issues with his muscles.
They were both heavily involved yesterday as the team put final touches to their training for tomorrow’s match.
“We have prepared very well for the match. I’m happy to report that they (Jalai and Orotomal) are all back and I expect them to play a part in Saturday’s match,” Ndiraya said.
Issa Sadiki is also closing on a return to action after missing last week’s match with a toe problem as he also took part in yesterday’s session, but coach Tonderai Ndiraya said the winger will not be rushed back.
“He has resumed training though we don’t really expect him to play a part in this match. We are now working on his fitness. All our players are back at training, which is a good sign for us. We are seeing very good competition in training, and it has left us with so many options for the upcoming match. We are really in a good space.”
Dynamos has one of the strongest squad depth’s in the country this season, and the return to full fitness of Jalai and Orotomal is giving the coach a selection headache.
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At least eight new players joined the team since the start of the year including three foreigners from West Africa.
Ndiraya has declared himself happy with the quality of his squad as he revealed the struggle he faces picking his starting XI for each game.
“I’m happy,” he said when asked about the depth and quality in his squad.
“We have been building the team over some time. Last year because of the resources we couldn’t bring the quality that we really wanted. This year we got a partner who injected some cash into our system. That gave us an opportunity to bring in some quality players so I can safely say we now have some quality in our rank.”
With a few days to go before the local transfer window closes, Ndiraya said they are hoping to renew King Nadolo’s contract which expired last year. They are also looking to add a third goalkeeper into the squad.
“There are some negotiations for King to come back. The management is taking care of that. If we bring in King, and a third goalkeeper, we would be done with the transfer window. We are satisfied with what we have already. We have quality which can take us through the season. But of course we want to have numbers because you never know what happens during the season. You might have injuries and loss of form so we want to have depth and the addition of the two players would really make us a very competitive side.”
Last week’s win saw Dynamos moving third on the log standings with 13 points, three behind joint leaders Manica Diamonds and Triangle.
They will be hoping to make it three wins in a row with victory over ZPC Kariba, which could take them top of the table.
“In terms of results we are progressing but in terms of performances I still want more from the team. We have got new players, some foreigners and it takes a bit of time for these players to be a team. I’m hoping by the time we play the tenth game we would be looking like a team. We don’t have a team yet, but we are slowly getting to be a team so we expect the good form to continue.”
Match day eight fixtures
Tomorrow: Dynamos v ZPC Kariba (National Sports Stadium), Chicken Inn v Black Rhinos (Luveve), Yadah v Bulawayo City (Baobab), FC Platinum v Ngezi Platinum Stars (Mandava, 1pm)
Sunday: Caps United v Highlanders (National Sports Stadium), Tenax v Herentals College (Sakubva), Bulawayo Chiefs v Harare City (Luveve), Triangle v Whawha (Gibbo), Cranborne v Manica Diamonds (Baobab).
- Follow Henry on Twitter @henrymhara
