IN light of injuries in his squad and the suspension of one of his captains, Peter Muduhwa, Highlanders coach Kelvin Kaindu is concerned about his side facing Chicken Inn in a Castle Lager Premier Soccer League (PSL) match at Barbourfields Stadium.
Without mentioning names save for those who returned to light training after the 3-0 routing of Green Buffaloes in the Chibuku Super Cup last Sunday, Kaindu said some players got knocks in that match.
Muduhwa has accumulated three yellow cards and will miss the Sunday match, while his partner at the back, Andrew Mbeba, who has been out of action for some time, is believed to be facing internal disciplinary action.
Arthur Ndlovu, snatched from Arenel Movers, has been holding the fort in place of Mbeba.
Another defender, Archford Faira, has been ruled out of the Sunday game, while goalkeeper Raphael Pitisi was stretchered off early in the Green Buffaloes match.
“We have got a bit of good news and bad news. Some of our players were injured. Yesterday, we had two [Marvin Sibanda and Godfrey Makaruse] players who resumed training, although they were doing light training,” Kaindu said.
“It is unfortunate that even in the last game, we had Pitisi being stretchered out with another injury and also this week, we have a suspension on one of our key players. That probably gives us a disadvantage in depth when it comes to the selection of our team for this weekend’s game.”
Chicken Inn have given Highlanders a hard time and the Bulawayo giants have not won a match against the GameCocks since the return to football activity after the COVID-19 pandemic.
- Chicken Inn knockout Harare City
- FC Platinum 8 points clear as Chicken Inn falters again
- Panashe Mutasa comes of age at Tenax FC
- Dynamos back to winning ways
Keep Reading
In 2022, the two sides drew both their league matches, while last year, Chicken Inn were the second team to beat Highlanders after FC Platinum when Bosso had gone 19 games without defeat.
The other league match last season was a draw.
This year, the GameCocks handed Highlanders their first defeat after a six-match unbeaten run for the Bulawayo giants, which saw Bosso sliding from the top of the table.
And Kaindu is apprehensive about the situation in camp at Highlanders ahead of the match against Chicken Inn.
“It becomes very difficult, if you look at the depth we have in training right now. If one has to select a team, we are just picking everyone who is in training,” the Zambian mentor said.
“So it gives you a disadvantage because there will be no competition in training. Everyone who is training knows that they will be able to make it into the final team and it is a disadvantage when you are preparing for a team like Chicken Inn.”
Chicken Inn, who will be home on Sunday, had their bid to raise the gate charges to US$5 from US$3 for the game thrown out by the Premier Soccer League.
