DYNAMOS coach Kelvin Kaindu is hoping that their Chibuku Super Cup final clash against Triangle today at Gibbo Stadium will not spill into a penalty shootout, despite his team’s uncanny success from the spot this season.
The Cup final returns to the Lowveld after seven years, with hosts Triangle targeting a second win of the competition.
Triangle hosted the 2018 final, winning the game 2-0 against Harare City, and they will be hoping for a repeat performance to cap off a season in which they narrowly escaped relegation on the last day.
Their visitors, Dynamos, also had a difficult league campaign and secured their top-flight status only on the final day.
Thus, winning this Cup will prove a huge consolation for either team, potentially transforming what had looked like a horrible season into a memorable one.
For Dynamos, the stakes are even higher as they are aiming for a historic three-peat in the Chibuku Super Cup, having successfully lifted the coveted trophy in the last two consecutive seasons.
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Yet, their road to this year’s final has been less a triumphant march and more a series of escapes, overcoming Yadah, Simba Bhora, ZPC Kariba and bitter rivals Highlanders, all via the nerve-shredding lottery.
Although they have been the undisputed masters of the penalty shootout, Kaindu doesn’t believe in “fifth time” luck.
“I think from penalty shootouts, we have always been the team that has been outstanding,” he said.
“We have been good and we want to hope and believe that we still have that pedigree and we still have that advantage.
“But we are quite optimistic that in this final, we don’t want to stretch as far as penalties. Hopefully, it can be decided in 90 minutes.”
The build-up to the season-ending final has been anything but smooth sailing for the Harare giants.
A crippling player strike over unpaid allowances rocked the club earlier in the week.
And just when the dust settled, star midfielder Denver Mukamba, a player whose brilliance is matched only by his notorious history of self-sabotage, pulled a shocking vanishing act from training later in the week.
He is out of today’s match, adding turmoil to an already tense camp.
Lying in wait, coolly surveying the DeMbare turmoil, is a Triangle team who too are seeking a second Chibuku Super Cup trophy.
And they possess the ultimate insider advantage in coach, Genesis Mangombe.
He is a former Dynamos coach who not only led the team to glory in 2023, but also masterminded Triangle dramatic relegation escape this season.
Today, he faces his old club armed with intimate knowledge of their culture, their tactics and crucially their players.
“I know a lot about Dynamos, from the tradition, culture and the players,” Mangombe declared with confidence.
He is ready to weaponise the brutal conditions of the Lowveld.
“Playing at home will give us a lot of advantages.
“It’s very hot and humid this part of the country, so we are going to make sure that we use it to our advantage.
“We also know the turf because we are used to play at Gibbo.”
Kaindu’s fears are compounded by the daunting reality of the Gibbo hoodoo.
Dynamos have not managed to beat Triangle United at this venue since 2016, and their last visit in the league this year ended in a demoralising 2-0 defeat.
Adding insult to injury, Kaindu revealed his side was deliberately denied crucial access to the match venue.
“We tried to ask for access to the venue so that we could just familiarise with the pitch, and we have not been successful,” a frustrated Kaindu confirmed.
“So the advantage is more on Triangle’s side.”
For the winning side, the reward is massive, a US$75 000 prize and, more importantly, a ticket
to represent Zimbabwe in the prestigious CAF Confederation Cup next year.
Will Dynamos finally win a Chibuku Super Cup inside 90 minutes and secure a historic three-peat, or will the heat, the hoodoo, and the haunted knowledge of Mangombe crush their dreams at Gibbo?