Mangombe takes swipe at Dynamos after Triangle return

Genesis Mangombe has appeared to take a swipe at former club Dynamos, suggesting he now enjoys greater coaching freedom following his return to Triangle United as he begins the task of rescuing the Lowveld side from relegation.

Mangombe was reappointed Triangle head coach last week after leaving Dynamos by mutual agreement following a turbulent spell that ended with his suspension alongside assistant coaches Newsome Mutema and Tomderai Marume, and goalkeeping coach Britto Gwere.

The quartet had faced several allegations, including insubordination, selecting players out of position, the alleged use of juju and match-fixing. However, the club later dropped all charges before the parties agreed to part ways.

Speaking in his first interview since returning to Triangle, Mangombe suggested the working environment at his new club differed significantly from what he experienced at Dynamos.

"The environment here is very conducive and you can do anything you want in terms of your team selection... in terms of whatever you want and it gives you freedom also to have your final squad," Mangombe said.

"I'm happy that there are no challenges as compared to some teams."

His comments are likely to fuel speculation about reported disagreements over team selection during his time at Dynamos.

Reflecting on his tenure at Zimbabwe's most successful football club, Mangombe acknowledged the pressure that comes with the role.

"Coaching Dynamos, the biggest club in the country comes with a lot of pressure and also resistance from some of the supporters to what you'll be doing," he said.

"But at the same time it's a very good experience and it's also going to help us when facing these big teams. We know how it feels to play versus those big teams and I'm sure that we are going to start collecting maximum points."

Dynamos have since moved on under technical director Aristica Cioaba, with recent victories over Agama and Hardrock lifting the Harare giants to third place on the Castle Lager Premier Soccer League table.

Mangombe, meanwhile, inherits a Triangle side rooted to the bottom of the standings with just 11 points from 21 matches.

The former Dynamos coach successfully guided Triangle to safety last season and also led the club to the Chibuku Super Cup final, achievements that earned him the move to Harare.

Despite Triangle's difficult position, Mangombe believes the squad has the quality to survive.

"The team isn't that bad but what matters most are the results," he said.

"At times you need to change the mindset and also try to make sure that you lure the boys into what you want, especially the philosophy, the type of play using the modern trends like the intensity and also aggression."

With only 13 league matches remaining, Mangombe acknowledged there is little time to implement his ideas.

"We also have to let them know what is expected of them looking at the team where they are deep down fighting relegation," he said.

"So it means there is a lot of work and also they have to adapt very quickly to what we want so that we start collecting maximum points."

His second spell at Triangle begins this afternoon with a crucial Castle Lager Premier Soccer League encounter against fellow strugglers Agama at Wadzanayi Stadium.

Agama sit just above Triangle on the table with 16 points, making the fixture a key contest in the battle to avoid relegation.

Mangombe said his objective is not only to secure positive results but also to restore confidence within the squad.

"We are going to work very hard to improve the team," he said.

"When we say we want to improve the team we want to make sure that we play very good football, entertaining football, while at the same time winning games so that we come out of the relegation zone."

Today: MWOS v Dynamos (Ngoni), Herentals College v Hardrock (Rufaro), Agama v Triangle (Wadzanayi)