AT the beginning of the 2023 soccer season, only a few — that is if there were any — expected the Castle Lager Premier Soccer League race to be as tight as it is right now.
Most, if not all, thought it would be another smooth sailing year for the Money Bags — FC Platinum, but as things stand right now, that might not be the case.
New and strong challengers have emerged in the form of Ngezi Platinum Stars, Manica Diamonds, Bulawayo Chiefs, and even the once sleeping giants Caps United and Highlanders appear to have woken up from their slumber while Dynamos too cannot easily be discounted.
Although some might say it is too early to judge, the truth is that the games played so far have been enough to tell the direction the PSL title race is taking and to also give us an idea of which teams might be fighting against relegation.
Yes, FC Platinum have dominated our football at will since 2017, but Norman Mapeza has so far learnt that his team will have to produce something special to win a record-breaking fifth straight title.
Although some say FC Platinum have always been slow starters, statistics at hand show that their start to the 2023 season this year has not been slow but bad, if not really bad.
In eight games, Kugona Kunenge Kudada have won three, lost two, and drawn three, and have conceded a massive nine goals while scoring 10.
This is in contrast to the team they play today, Ngezi Platinum Stars who are still to lose a game and have won three, drawn five and have plundered 13 goals in the process against seven.
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A loss at Baobab Stadium will see FC Platinum drop further down the pecking order from the current unfamiliar eighth position they occupy in the standings.
The story, though, is not about FC Platinum and how they are losing grip, but how tight the race to be the best in the Zimbabwean premiership is proving to be.
Ahead of the weekend fixtures, the difference between the top placed team, Highlanders, who had 15 points, and the 10th placed team, Triangle who were on 11 points, was only four points.
In between, were Caps United also on 15 points, Ngezi on 13 points, and five teams who had 12 points; Dynamos, Manica Diamonds, Chicken Inn, Bulawayo Chiefs and FC Platinum themselves.
Any of these teams is capable of going top of the table at any given time and probably win the championship at the end of the campaign.
What is interesting is the fact that the days that money used to rule seem to have passed as most of the teams now compete equally with the likes of FC Platinum and Ngezi in terms of financial standing.
Even the once cry-babies of Zimbabwean football, Dynamos, now have forgotten about the weekly player protests over money and are now safely in the hands of Sakunda Holdings
Those who even think that money problems will have a toll on Caps United will have a rethink as the Green Machine seem more focused on achieving their goals than the off-field problems.
From what we have seen so far, the 2023 soccer season will be one to remember for some time rather than one to quickly forget.
What, though, is clearly evident is that it looks like a new champion will be crowned this year but the question is who?
Will it be the traditional giants, Caps United, Dynamos, or Highlanders or that another outsider will take it again? — It’s a guessing game that we will have to play over the next six months.
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