OnSport Reporter
WARRIORS’ coach Michael Nees is not worried about beating Burkina Faso but is focused on his side’s performance when the two sides clash in an international friendly match at the Stade El Bachir in Mohammédia, Morocco tonight.
The match kicks off at 6pm local, 25km from Casablanca, where the Warriors are camped.
With a sizeable number of new faces making up the squad, Nees said, they are likely to make a start in the side that takes on Burkina Faso.
“Well, it’s not only about winning. First of all, it’s about the performance. We must gradually improve our performances and that’s the best prediction for a good result.
We also have to respect the opponent. They’re a little bit higher ranked than us in the Fifa ranking. It’s a good side. They’re in second position in the World Cup group. They have some very good players,” Nees said.
He added: “For us, we want to win. No doubt about that. But we also want to integrate the new players and see if they can cope on that level and how they settle in our way of playing together. We are confident in our own abilities and let’s see how the match evolves. But of course we will give everything, we try everything.”
Belgium-based Bill Antonio, Elvis Chipezeze, who plays for Magesi in South Africa, Tino Kadewere (Nantes), Sean Fusire of Sheffield Wednesday in England and Jonah Fabisch (FC Aue, Germany) are part of the squad which also has locally-based players Mason Mushore (Highlanders), Isheanesu Mauchi and Donald Mudadi (Simba Bhora and Peter Muduhwa and Mthokozisi Msebe of Scottland and TelOne’s Tawanda Macheke.
Teenage Hadebe captains the side, which also has other big names in Khama Billiat, Tawanda Maswanhise, Gerald Takwara and Munashe Garananga.
Marvelous Nakamba, Marshall Munetsi and Andy Rinomhota are not part of the squad which take on Niger on Tuesday in another friendly match, as they prepare for upcoming World Cup qualifiers and the Africa Cup of Nations in Egypt in December and January next year.
“The excitement is slowly growing. We are going into final preparation to this match with meetings and a training session. The team assembled well. We got settled here in Morocco. We got used to the weather. I think it will be an interesting game and the team will be looking really forward. When you see our group has a lot of new faces, also players who came back and of course there will be some new faces automatically on the pitch in the starting eleven,” Nees said.
