JOHANNESBURG - With only a couple of games to go before the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) qualifying matches are completed, the Cosafa region is in distress.
The region has only one representative still with a good chance of going to Gabon 2017 bar a miracle happening.
The only team that can save the Cosafa region of its blushes is none other than the Warriors of Zimbabwe. But hey, the Warriors have their own issues.
When everyone is raving about how good they are and how they are gelling at the right time, the Zimbabwe senior national team can do the unexpected. They can turn from being the most imperious side to the poorest in a short period of time.
But can that happen again when the whole of Africa is singing the praises of Kalisto Pasuwa’s charges?
As I said, don’t discount anything from the Warriors, they can turn from being the best into the worst at the same time.
That is how unpredictable the Warriors are. But if they live up to their perennial tag of being unreliable, this is the year they will lose face in the world of football.
With the likes of Bafana Bafana, Zambia and Angola unlikely to represent Cosafa in Gabon, the Warriors have an opportunity to fly the regional flag on their own.
Following the 4-0 defeat of Swaziland at the National Sports Stadium on Monday, Pasuwa and his squad have been the talking point in the world of football.
They now need to beat Malawi at home and avoid defeat in Guinea in September — that should be enough to see them seal a berth to Gabon.
I don’t see why this Zim team cannot go places. It has some of the best individual talent on the African continent and on paper, looks far better than the late Reinard Fabisch’s much vaunted Dream Team.
It has one of the most potent strike forces that would make any coach salivate with envy — the likes of Knowledge Musona, Khama Billiat, my favourite player Evans Rusike and the like.
What Pasuwa needs to inculcate in the minds of his players is that winning should be a culture. They must play to win every match regardless of its significance.
They must beat Malawi at home and travel to Guinea looking for a result. That is the mentality of a winning side.
No one must be assured of walking into the team. Every player must earn his place.
I liked Pasuwa’s stance of benching Billiat in the reverse match against Swaziland, although in the bigger scheme of things, I think it was a tactical move.
I am not a big fan of Nyasha Mushekwi, though, I think his big physique will come handy when the Warriors play big West Africans.
I would still go for a regular three-pronged attack of Musona, Billiat and Rusike. This is one strike force that will terrorise defenders across Africa and even win Zimbabwe some medals if they happen to go to Gabon.
The nation’s football fans have suffered enough pain of watching other nations on television and it is high time to translate that into winning things.
Nothing is impossible. We have the capacity to dominate this game.
It is not a privilege of the chosen few.
Go Warriors Go!