WARRIORS forward Tawanda Chirewa impressed Derby County coach Paul Warne in his mid-week debut for the club in a cup match and could be in line for some minutes in today’s league match.
Warne, however, admits that Chirewa still has a lot to learn, especially as he steps into first team football.
He spent last season playing for Wolves Under 21s, although he made four first team appearances.
The 20-year-old, who is part of the Zimbabwe national team squad to play Kenya and Cameroon in Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers next week, moved to Derby on loan as he steps up his development.
He played in the defeat to Barrow in the English League Cup on Tuesday and his manager was full of praise.
“He was good, but it would have been better if the experience had been a more positive one,” said Warne yesterday as he both reflected on the league match as well as looking ahead into today’s home clash with Bristol City.
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“I picked a team that I thought would have been strong enough to win but, unfortunately, it wasn’t, against a good Barrow team. I played him (Chirewa) out of position, but I just needed him to be in the dressing room and I also needed him to know the importance of first-team football.
“For example, if you kick the ball away and you get booked early on, you’ve got to struggle to stay on for 90 minutes.”
He expected Chirewa to improve as he gets more minutes under his belt.
“That’s all part of the learning curve. He’d only been in the building for 24 hours virtually, so it was quick. That’s how elite sport is,” Warne said.
“I think it will do him the world of good to get some minutes under his belt and so the lads can know what he can do.
“We’ll be sitting with him watching his clips, critiquing everything he’s done. There are things we can help him with and we’ll enjoy working with him.”
Warriors coach Michael Nees would have been pleased to see earn some competitive minutes ahead of the two crucial qualifiers and if he were to get another run today, that would be an added edge.
After today’s match, Chirewa will be expected to travel to Uganda, where he will link up with the rest of the squad.
Fifteenth-placed Derby have a crucial home tie against Bristol City, who are on position five on the table.
Derby will be looking to recover from defeats in their last two league matches.
They kicked off the Championship season with a win over Middlesbrough.
Warne’s side played out a spirited 1-0 win in their first league match of the campaign on home soil when they beat Middlesbrough a fortnight ago.
Warriors squad
Goalkeepers: Washington Arubi, Marley Tavaziva, Bernard Donovan
Defenders: Gerald Takwara, Brendan Galloway, Munashe Garananga, Andrew Mbeba, Godknows Murwira, Emmanuel Jalai, Teenage Hadebe
Midfielders: Marshall Munetsi, Andy Rinomhota, Jordan Zemura, Walter Musona, Daniel Msendami, Brian Banda, Tawanda Maswanhise, Tawanda Chirewa, Richard Hachiro
Strikers: Tino Kadewere, Douglas Mapfumo, Prince Dube, Obriel Chirinda, Khama Billiat