WARRIORS coach Jairosi Tapera has called on his players to honour the memory of Norman Maroto by beating Zambia in the two teams' Cosafa Cup Group B match at the Wolfson Stadium in Port Elizabeth, South Africa this afternoon, a result that could secure semifinal qualification for Zimbabwe.
The former Warriors and Dynamos star died at the age of 40 in the early hours of Friday, plunging the country into mourning.
The 2002 Soccer Star of the Year was hospitalised at a private hospital last Thursday evening following a bout of flu.
He will be buried in Guruve tomorrow.
Tapera said Maroto's death shook him to the core, having met him on Friday last week and appeared to be in very good health.
He said the impact of his death had also been felt more acutely by the Warriors players, most of whom adored the former striker who was now working for the Footballers Union of Zimbabwe (FUZ).
"His death came as a shock to me. I last met him on Friday last week when he came to Mutare together with Wonder Sithole to present the FUZ player of the month to Michael Tapera. We went to lunch together and went to watch our junior team play afterwards. He didn't show any signs of illness or of being unwell. He was in his usual jovial mood," Tapera recalled.
"Norman is a legend of our game and he helped a lot of players during his time at FUZ. He had a strong connection with a lot of players in camp, so they were really affected when the news broke. He was so passionate about the game and the Warriors. I'm told he asked to watch us play against Comoros on TV at a foyer of the hospital before he was admitted. He watched the whole match. That's how passionate he was with this team.
"We want to honour and remember him the best way possible, on the field representing the country. We have to try and win this match for him. I have spoken to the boys about this."
Having got off to a perfect start in the tournament by beating Comoros 1-0 last Thursday in their opener, the Warriors will be looking to secure semi-final qualification with a win over their old foes this afternoon.
But Tapera knows they will have to be at their absolute best to beat a wounded Zambia side, who were beaten 2-0 by guest nation Kenya in the two team's opener.
Anything other than a victory for Chipolopolo would leave the tournament defending champions' hopes of progressing out of the group hanging by a thread.
"The matches between the two countries have always been heated contests, and we are not expecting anything less tomorrow (today). We watched Zambia's game against Kenya and what we saw is a good side that was so unfortunate to lose.
"They will be highly-charged, they are desperate and they wouldn't want to lose again. They are going to come at us in this one to try and win so that they get their campaign back on track. But its a derby and we will play the best that we can. We are prepared for that, and I'm sure we will get the positive result that we want."
Kenya,who play Comoros today, currently leads Group B with three points, followed by Zimbabwe who are second due to an inferior goal difference. Comoros are without a point on third position while Zambia are also pointless and bottom of the group standings after the first round of matches.
Only the top team in each of the three pools and the best placed runner-up advance to the semifinals this year, meaning it is all to play for and any slip-ups put teams on the back foot.
After their opening win over Comoros, a point against Zambia would not be fatal for the Warriors, especially with the other group contriving to draw their matches.
Matches in Group A and Group C failed to produce any winners in the first round.
But Tapera insists they cannot approach the game with that mindset.
"I don't want to look at it that way. I always want my teams to play to win matches although sometimes we end up not getting it. We are approaching the next game with a mindset to try and win it. We have the quality to win," he said.
"Individually, and as a group the players are good. They played very well against Comoros, beyond our expectations. We were so much organised defensively and going forward, our transition was top notch and we reacted to the opposition's movements very quickly. I'm only hoping that they can replicate the same performance against Zambia."
England-based duo of Joey Phuthi and Shane Maroodza picked knocks at training on Friday and are doubtful for today's match.
Zimbabwe will conclude their group matches against Kenya on Tuesday. Tapera would be hoping to go into that final match with a semi-final ticket already secured in the bag.