BY HENRY MHARA
DYNAMOS coach Tonderai Ndiraya wants nothing less than victory in their Chibuku Super Cup match against Harare City at the National Sports Stadium this afternoon as he aims to finish the Group One first round matches with a flourish.
Today’s match pits two coaches, Ndiraya and Lloyd Chitembwe who have so much respect for one another.
It will be a battle of wits when two of the finest football minds on the local scene come up against one another.
Before the big match, Herentals and Yadah will kick off the day with a mid morning clash at the same venue.
Ndiraya has an added incentive to beat the Sunshine Boys, a team that ended his quest for the cup in 2015 with DeMbare before he eventually won it with Ngezi Platinum Stars the following year.
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The Harare giants are unbeaten in the tournament so far and currently top the group, but with the teams set to meet in the second round of matches, all the six teams in the pool still have a chance of progressing to quarterfinals of the competition.
“We are going to put everything into the match because we want to keep the position at the top so that when we play the second round of the matches we won’t have much pressure,” Ndiraya said.
“That is the target that we have given ourselves. We want to get into the second round with less pressure so it’s important to collect as many points as possible in the first round of matches then of course manage that which we have, in the second round.”
Dynamos, who are yet to win Chibuku Super Cup, have eight points in their kitty, followed by Caps on six points.
Harare City are also on six points while ZPC Kariba who face United tomorrow, are also not far off at five points.
Herentals and Yadah anchor the group with two points each.
“It’s very important for us to get points given the fact that we are not far away from the chasing pack. City are one of the teams who are closely behind us so it will be important to get points against them so that we open a healthy lead at the top. There is so much competition in the group and almost every team is still in it so we need to get maximum points.”
The last time the two teams met in a league match, way back in December 2019, Harare City got the better of Dynamos with a 3-1 victory. They didn’t play each other last year after COVID-19 washed away the league season.
“We are facing a difficult team. Its not going to be an easy match for us, but with how we have prepared we should be up for the challenge.
“City are also playing very good football and they have been doing so well. It promises to be an exciting game,” Ndiraya said.
De Mbare captain Partson Jaure is expected to return to the starting line-up following his halftime substitution in the Harare derby last week.
The defender had a mishap in the tunnel as he made his way back to the dressing room at halftime.
“Partson is fine. It was just a slip, nothing serious. He has been training this whole week and we look forward for him to play this match. We got almost everyone now back at training so we are spoilt for choice in terms of selection for this match,” added Ndiraya.
It is Harare City who are coming into the match with their confidence high after beating Herentals 2-1 in their last match last weekend, while Dynamos drew one-all with Caps.
- Follow Henry on Twitter @henrymhara