A Dynamos executive member has said coach Genesis Mangombe's job is "safe for now" and the club's top hierarchy is happy with how the team is improving of late amid revelations that they were ready to fire him if he had lost to Highlanders in the Independence Trophy final.
The former Yadah coach has been under the spotlight after a stuttering start to the season, but a recent run of four unbeaten matches in all competitions left Mangombe a relieved man.
A 1-0 defeat to Simba Bhora early this month saw reports emerging that the Dynamos top hierarchy was ready to pull the trigger he had lost the subsequent match.
But Mangombe guided his team to a 1-0 over Highlanders in the Independence Trophy final before beating TelOne in the next match.
Their match against Chegutu Pirates last week was abandoned in additional time when Mangombe's team was leading 1-0. The Harare giants are certain they will be awarded the game on a 3-0 win scoreline.
On Sunday, Dynamos secured a point against defending league champions Ngezi Platinum Stars in a four-goal thriller at Rufaro Stadium.
A source confided to NewsDay Sport that the club's leadership was ready to pull the trigger if Mangombe had lost to Highlanders in Murambinda.
"The support for Mangombe dwindled significantly within the executive following the loss to Simba Bhora. Very few people were still on his side after that result. That win against Highlanders saved his job. If he had lost that game, he was gone that same day," said the source.
- Panashe Mutasa comes of age at Tenax FC
- Dynamos back to winning ways
- Ndiraya backs Antonio to impress in Belgium
- Artists struggling to grasp intellectual property rights
Keep Reading
Another highly-placed source said: "We do reviews every five games and the technical committee was obviously not happy with how the team performed in the first five games but they gave him the benefit of the doubt.
“Fortunately, there has been an improvement in the last few games so his job is safe for now. The technical committee will sit after our match against Chicken Inn to review the last five games and depending on where we will be on the log standings and how the team would have performed in that game, they will make their recommendations. But as for now, there is no red flag."
Club chairperson Moses Maunganidze could not be reached for comment as his mobile phone number went unanswered.
Dynamos currently lie 11th on the log standings with 10 points but will jump up to sixth when they get awarded their points from the abandoned match against Pirates.
Mangombe's men are eight points behind log leaders Highlanders who maintained their top position on 18 points with a 2-nil over Caps United on Sunday.
High-flying Manica Diamonds moved to second position on the log standings with 16 points following a crucial 1-0 win over FC Platinum for their fifth straight win.
This season's surprise package Bulawayo Chiefs are third with 15 points, the same number with Chicken Inn, while Simba Bhora dropped to fifth after they were held to a 1-1 draw by TelOne on Saturday.
All is not well at former champions FC Platinum’s camp after they stretched their winless run to four games with the defeat to Manica Diamonds, which was their straight loss after they also fell to ZPC Kariba last week.
Before that, the Norman Mapeza-coached side, which is sixth on the log standings, fought from two goals down to draw against newcomers Arenel Movers and then gave away a two-goal lead in the next match to draw against another debutant Bikita Minerals.
Matchday 10 fixtures
Saturday: Bikita Minerals v TelOne (Sakubva), Ngezi Platinum Stars v Bulawayo Chiefs (Baobab), Chicken Inn v Dynamos (Barbourfields), Herentals v Yadah (Rufaro), Fc Platinum v GreenFuel (Mandava), Zpc Kariba v Manica Diamonds (Nyamhunga).
Sunday: Chegutu Pirates v Simba Bhora (Baobab), Caps United v Hwange (Rufaro), Arenel Movers v Highlanders (Barbourfields).
