Mhofu haunts Dembare

DYNAMOS coach Lloyd Mutasa is concerned by the danger posed by his former mentor Sunday Chidzambwa as he battles to steer the Harare giants out of the woods with a cagey assignment against ZPC Kariba at the National Sports Stadium tomorrow.

Mutasa finds himself under pressure to win matches following a run of inconsistent results with the former champions who are still trying to put together a competitive team after losing players at the end of last season. Of late, the technical team has been under pressure from a section of the supporters who appear to be losing patience with the rebuilding exercise.

Although DeMbare have conceded a lot of ground in the race, a 1-0 win over fellow strugglers Harare City during the mid-week has managed to get the family united again. "If you look at ZPC Kariba and their coach Sunday Chidzambwa we are talking of experience.

"He has got a very strong side and Dynamos being Dynamos, every game that we play is a tough game. "So we expect a tough game on Sunday," said Mutasa.

DeMbare have managed 11 points from nine starts which leaves them deep in the bottom half of the table. ZPC Kariba have been enjoying their game and are currently in the top four with six wins from 10 outings.

They have done well with such players as the rejuvenated Francesco Zekumbawira, prodigal son Raphael Manuvire, Blessing Nyamuzihwa, Daniel Chakupe and Never Tigere doing well.

However, DeMbare manager Richard Chihoro said they should not be afraid of Chidzambwa's arsenal. "It's important to note that we are not playing against Chidzambwa but ZPC Kariba. "Of course Mhofu is an experienced coach and has coached our coach Lloyd Mutasa at some point and no doubt he wants to maintain that superiority. "But the focus is not on him, it's on his team which we feel has been doing very well of late. We have to find ways to get maximum points from them. I am sure our win over Harare City has helped our confidence. So we are expecting another good day in the office," said Chihoro.

Cameroonian Christain Joel Epoupa was the hero in DeMbare's last match against Harare City with a magnificent strike which earned the Harare giants maximum points.

The expatriate forward will be the man to watch having found the target in the last two games for DeMbare.

Chidzambwa, a DeMbare legend, said although they suffered injuries to three of their key players ahead of the trip to Harare, the setback has not dampened the will to fight for maximum points. "We are looking forward to this game with hope but we have had a bit of a problem because three of my key players are injured and I don't think they will be able to play against Dynamos.

"So this would mean we have to make changes to our team by bringing in some players who probably might not have played a game this season. I am afraid though that the last time at Highlanders we encountered some problems with new boys who had stage fright after seeing the big crowds at Barbourfields. "But let me stress that we are not coming there to just stand and watch Dynamos do whatever they want. We are coming there to fight for three points.

"You always have to be at your best against Dynamos. It doesn't matter how they are playing because Dynamos being Dynamos they can always give you a tough day on any day. "We are the underdogs because we have only managed one point in our last two games and they picked up four. It shows they are coming up. "But we didn't play our normal game in our last match against Chapungu. Hopefully we will be able to come back," said Chidzambwa.

Fixtures

Tomorrow: Bantu Rovers v Harare City (Luveve 1pm) Chicken Inn v Shabanie Mine (Luveve 3:30pm), Black Rhinos v Yadah (Morris Depot), FC Platinum v Highlanders (Mandava), Triangle United v CAPS United (Gibbo), Hwange v How Mine (Colliery), Dynamos v ZPC Kariba (NSS), Ngezi Platinum v Bulawayo City (Baobab), Chapungu v Tsholotsho (Ascot).