DYNAMOS head coach Genesis Mangombe has dismissed Highlanders’ training boycott as potential mind games, declaring his side has no sympathy for their rivals ahead of Sunday’s high-stakes Battle of Zimbabwe at Barbourfields Stadium.
While the Glamour Boys enjoy a smooth build-up to the country’s biggest football fixture, chaos has rocked the Bosso camp.
Players at the Bulawayo giants boycotted training on Tuesday over unpaid dues, and the tense standoff remained unresolved as of yesterday.
Despite the turmoil engulfing Zimbabwe’s oldest Premiership club, Mangombe is refusing to read into his opponents’ off-field woes and expects a fiercely contested match regardless of the hearsay.
“No, some of them are mind games, you see,” Mangombe said ahead of the big tie.
“But at the same time, we don’t want to dwell much on that information.
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“And you know, Highlanders being Highlanders, you know, is a very good team and we don’t want to really focus on them not training because these are just hearsay, and at the end of the day I know they want to fulfil the fixture.
“So at the end of the day, we know they are going to play this game.”
Of interest is the fact that Bosso have endured a number of the boycotts this season despite being bankrolled by controversial businessman Wicknell Chivayo.
But everytime their preparations have been marred by reports of player strikes, they have ended up winning the subsequent matches.
Mangombe emphasised that his squad is treating the match with the utmost seriousness, with players fighting hard in training just to make the travelling squad.
“It’s a big game and we will take it very seriously,” he asserted.
“You can see it at training that the guys are doing so well so that they are also selected in the final squad to travel to Bulawayo.
“But you know, in this league, each and every team is very, very good and we need to apply ourselves positively.
“That’s what we have been doing in all the past games. So yeah, of course, specifically we are preparing for this game, especially this week, so that we go there and get maximum points.”
In stark contrast to Bosso’s troubled week, Dynamos are preparing seamlessly and carrying massive momentum following a convincing 3–0 thumping of TelOne last Saturday.
Mangombe expressed immense satisfaction with how his players have responded to the tactical demands of the technical team during the weekly sessions.
“The boys are ready to go, and I’m also happy with the response starting on our first training day,” he noted.
“Everyone is ready to go, everyone is working so well and also trying to catch up with the tactics.
“We are actually telling them when we go to play Highlanders, you know playing those big games, big derbies is very, very important, and in itself there is motivation because everyone wants to play, everyone wants to be included in the team.
“So, at the end of the day, we have a very, very good competition and I know we are going to come up with a very very strong squad to face Highlanders.”
Mangombe also provided a brief update on the team’s casualty ward, confirming that while they will travel with a strong squad, fullback Christopher Netty and goalkeeper Nfor Idrissou remain sidelined.
The renewal of this historic rivalry follows a thrilling 2-2 draw in the reverse fixture at Rufaro Stadium back in March.
In that encounter, Dynamos had to fight back twice, with Tellmore Pio and Collin Mujuru cancelling out goals from Bosso’s Never Rauzhi and Mongameli Tshuma.
A lot more than bragging rights is on the line this Sunday.
Dynamos sit sixth on the table with 29 points from 17 matches, just eight points behind leaders Scottland FC.
Highlanders are hot on their heels in seventh place, trailing DeMbare by just a single point.
History heavily favours the hosts, as Dynamos have notoriously struggled in this fixture for a decade.
Shockingly, Dynamos have not defeated Highlanders in open play since June 2015.
Their only two victories over Bosso since then came via 3–0 boardroom walkovers following crowd trouble in 2017 and 2023.
With Dynamos desperate to break their 11-year open-play hoodoo and Highlanders fighting internal fires, Sunday’s showdown promises fireworks.
Castle Lager Premier Soccer League matchday nineteen fixtures
Tomorrow: Bulawayo Chiefs v Agama (Luveve), TelOne v MWOS (Ascot), FC Hunters v Simba Bhora (Heart), Ngezi Platinum Stars v Scottland (Baobab), Herentals v Caps United (Rufaro)
Sunday: Hardrock v ZPC Kariba (Chahwanda), Manica Diamonds v FC Platinum (Sakubva), Triangle United v Chicken Inn (Gibbo), Highlanders v Dynamos (Barbourfields)