HARARE - Zimbabwe football coach Ian Gorowa has stuck with the majority of players who have been doing duty under his reign when he named a provisional 22-men squad for the 2015 African Nations Cup preliminary round qualifiers against Tanzania this month.
Gorowa has kept faith in the majority of his locally-based players who reached the semi-finals of the 2014 African Nations Championship (Chan) in South Africa earlier this year.
The Dynamos duo of Stephen Alimenda and Sydney Linyama, Harare City’s Talent Chawapuwa and CAPS United’s Ronald Pfumbidzayi are the notable new inclusions into Gorowa’s squad from the local PSL contingent.
Warriors team manager Shariff Mussa said the team will go in camp on Monday.
“The team is expected in camp on Monday and will start training Tuesday onwards. The team will be trimmed to 18 shortly before our departure on Thursday or Friday,” Mussa said.
“There are other foreign-based players like (Carrington) Nyadombo and Khama Billiat we wanted to include are injured. I also spoke to (Sparta Prague defender) Costa Nhamoinesu and he is on road to recovery as well.
“(Edward) Sadomba (Edward) and (Ovidy) Karuru will not be available as they will be busy with their teams.
The Highlanders trio of Milton Ncube, Peter Moyo and Mamelodi Sundowns-bound Kuda Mahachi and Dynamos defender Partson Jaure have also got the nod.
The most-notable foreign-based players are University of Pretoria goalkeeper Washington Arubi, Mamelodi Sundowns striker Cuthbert Malajila, Kaiser Chiefs forward Kingston Nkhatha as well as Ajax Cape Town’s Simba Sithole.
The Warriors have been pooled in Group F but will first have to win play-offs between Tanzania and the winner between Mozambique and South Sudan for a place in the Group stages, where Zambia, Cape Verde and Niger lie in wait.
The Warriors face Tanzania on the weekend of May 16 to 18 before the return leg on May 30 to June 1.
The group stages will only start around September with seven groups of four teams playing a round robin format where the top two finishers will then qualify for Afcon 2015 in Morocco.
The seven group winners, seven group runners-up and the best third-placed side will qualify directly for the final tournament.
The final tournament will be played from January 17 to February 8 in Morocco next year.
Zim squad: George Chigova, Washington Arubi, Munyaradzi Diya, Hardlife Zvirekwi, Eric Chipeta, Partson Jaure, Sydney Linyama, Milton Ncube, Ronald Pfumbidzayi, Willard Katsande, Nqobizitha Masuku, Danny Phiri, Pasca Manhanga, Stephen Alimenda, Peter Moyo, Marshall Mudewe, Talent Chawapihwa, Kuda Mahachi, Tendai Ndoro, Simba Sithole, Kingston Nkhatha, Cuthbert Malajila.