Goodwill Zunidza
Two decades after Peter Ndlovu and his late elder sibling Adam hung up their famous number 12 and 13 jerseys, Zimbabwe is preparing to unleash its next explosive brotherly combination in an international fixture.
This comes after Warriors coach Michael Nees called up former skipper Knowledge Musona in the squad to face Benin in Durban on Thursday.
The 35-year old striker, who announced his retirement from the national team in 2022, was named alongside his younger brother Walter Musona in the 23-man ensemble that will also tackle Nigeria away in Uyo four days later.
Although the Norton-born brethren have been on the scene for a long-drawn period, this is the first time they are sharing camp on national duty.
All likelihood is that the coach will at some point throw them into the fray simultaneously in either or both next week’s fixtures as he goes for broke in seeking Zimbabwe’s first win of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers now at the midway stage.
The German mentor has never made secret his admiration for Knowledge who had a stint in Germany, turning out for Augsburg in the Bundesliga at the early stage of his foreign career before eventually finding his way to the new base in Saudi Arabia.
For one, there is no way the ‘Smiling Assasin’, as they know him, would be coerced out of retirement only to come and warm the bench and, second, he is also one fiery gunman certain to score once supplied with a clean ball in the box, a feat that has eluded the majority of his successors in the position since he quit.
His young brother Walter, for his part, is already a team regular who has since proved his marksmanship, specially remembered for the long-range free kick that earned a vital 1-1 draw with Nigeria in the earlier qualifier hosted by Zimbabwe in Rwanda last year.
The appearance of familial kinsmen in a football team has always been a fascinating spectacle in international football, and Zimbabwe in the past hardly missed out from such statistics.
Adam and Peter Ndlovu might have been the last set of brothers to play for the senior national team in 2005, but they were only rekindling the country’s brotherly glory in football.
In fact, around the mid-1990s, the Ndlovus’ big brother Madinda featured alongside them under another German, the charismatic Reinhardt Fabisch of the Dream Team fame, making it, at three, the highest number of blood brothers ever to don the green and gold jersey at the same time after independence.
The same Fabisch also fielded Claudius Zviripayi and Vitalis Takawira who despite different surnames (Vitalis changed his mid-stream) were understood to come from under one roof.
There were others before them such as Sunday and the late Misheck Chidzambwa as well as the late Dhana siblings Majid and Hamid.
The most legendary show in Warriors colours remains that of the Tendai Chieza-led brothers and their father Gideon, seven in total, who variously represented the then Rhodesia Pick from Mhangura FC in the late 60s to early 70s.
Aside from the impending Musonas’ family bash, coach Nees has not stated the objective of the forthcoming encounters against Group C log leaders Benin and African powerhouse Nigeria.
Zimbabwe looks to be out of the race for the group’s sole ticket to the Fifa finals set for United States, Canada and Mexico.
With a paltry two points from the two draws against Rwanda and Nigeria and two defeats to South Africa and Lesotho, many had expected Zifa to guide the coach in focusing on a development team.
But Nees, perhaps bent on securing a face-saving win in the qualifiers, is firmly fixed on assembling the best players available for duty.
It is difficult to fathom that he could already be preparing for December’s African Cup of Nations finals set for Morocco.
The certainty of Musona playing a part there as well as the other aging duo of Khama Billiat (34) and goalkeeper Washington Arubi (39), who is also in the latest squad, is remote given how the latter pair has to come limping to camp owing to recent recurrent injuries.
With space Nees would even have considered Ovidy Karuru too, as the silky linkman formed a terrific threesome with Billiat and the elder Musona during the 2017 to 2021 era when the Warriors seriously began their march in Africa, qualifying consecutively for Afcon.
Former Zimbabwe international Alois Bunjira believes Nees does not have much youth talent to consider right now even if he wished to infuse young blood into the team.
“The unfortunate reality for Zimbabwe is that we don’t have the development conveyor belt. We don’t even have an Under 20 or Under 23 team right now,” Bunjira observes.
“I am sure the new ZIFA board is now working on that, as I saw adverts of coaching jobs at age group levels. It’s work in progress,” he added.
Zifa though are likely putting the cart before the horse in advertising for junior coaches, as their employment drive could result in a zero-sum game.
Football stakeholders have bemoaned the defunct nature of structures from which to scout players.
“Constituting a junior football league should have been the first step for Zifa and national coaches appointed afterwards,” popular Mutare-based fan Ringayi Dhliwayo advocated, soon after the adverts were flighted.
“If they recruit coaches when there are no players to coach it becomes a waste of precious time and scarce resources.”
Attention for now remains on the salivating Musona Double-Act anticipated for the Moses Mabhida Stadium on Thursday evening.
Warriors squad
GOALKEEPERS:
ᴡᴀꜱʜɪɴɢᴛᴏɴ ᴀʀᴜʙɪ (ᴍᴀʀᴜᴍᴏ ɢᴀʟʟᴀɴᴛꜱ), ᴍᴀʀʟᴇʏ ᴛᴀᴠᴀᴢɪᴠᴀ (ʙʀᴇɴᴛꜰᴏʀᴅ), ᴍᴀʀᴛɪɴ ᴍᴀᴘɪꜱᴀ (ᴍᴡᴏꜱ ꜰᴄ)
DEFENDERS:
ᴊᴏʀᴅᴀɴ ᴢᴇᴍᴜʀᴀ (ᴜᴅɪɴᴇꜱᴇ), ᴅɪᴠɪɴᴇ ʟᴜɴɢᴀ (ꜱᴜɴᴅᴏᴡɴꜱ), ɢᴇʀᴀʟᴅ ᴛᴀᴋᴡᴀʀᴀ (ᴀʟ ᴍɪɴᴀᴀ ꜱᴄ), ᴍᴜɴᴀꜱʜᴇ ɢᴀʀᴀɴᴀɴɢᴀ (ꜰᴄ ᴄᴏᴘᴇɴʜᴀɢᴇɴ), ɪꜱʜᴇᴀɴᴇꜱ ᴍᴀᴜᴄʜɪ (ꜱɪᴍʙᴀ ʙʜᴏʀᴀ), ᴘᴇᴛᴇʀ ᴍᴜᴅᴜʜᴡᴀ (ꜱᴄᴏᴛʟᴀɴᴅ), ɢᴏᴅᴋɴᴏᴡꜱ ᴍᴜʀᴡɪʀᴀ (ꜱᴄᴏᴛʟᴀɴᴅ), ᴇᴍᴍᴀɴᴜᴇʟ ᴊᴀʟᴀɪ (ᴅʏɴᴀᴍᴏꜱ)
MIDFIELDERS:
ᴍᴀʀꜱʜᴀʟʟ ᴍᴜɴᴇᴛꜱɪ (ꜱᴛᴀᴅᴇ ᴅᴇ ʀᴇɪᴍꜱ), ᴀɴᴅʏ ʀɪɴᴏᴍʜᴏᴛᴀ (ᴄᴀʀᴅɪꜰꜰ ᴄɪᴛʏ), ᴍᴀʀᴠᴇʟᴏᴜꜱ ɴᴀᴋᴀᴍʙᴀ (ʟᴜᴛᴏɴ ᴛᴏᴡɴ), ᴛᴀᴡᴀɴᴅᴀ ᴄʜɪʀᴇᴡᴀ (ʜᴜᴅᴅᴇʀꜱꜰɪᴇʟᴅ ᴛᴏᴡɴ), ᴋɴᴏᴡʟᴇᴅɢᴇ ᴍᴜꜱᴏɴᴀ (ᴀʟ-ᴏᴋʜᴅᴏᴏᴅ)
*FORWARDS:*
ᴘʀɪɴᴄᴇ ᴅᴜʙᴇ (ʏᴏᴜɴɢ ᴀꜰʀɪᴄᴀɴꜱ), ᴛᴀᴡᴀɴᴅᴀ ᴍᴀꜱᴡᴀɴʜɪꜱᴇ (ᴍᴏᴛʜᴇʀᴡᴇʟʟ), ᴛᴇʀʀᴇɴᴄᴇ ᴅᴢᴠᴜᴋᴀᴍᴀɴᴊᴀ (ꜱᴜᴘᴇʀꜱᴘᴏʀᴛ ᴜɴɪᴛᴇᴅ), ᴛʏᴍᴏɴ ᴍᴀᴄʜᴏᴘᴇ (ꜱᴄᴏᴛʟᴀɴᴅ), ᴡᴀʟᴛᴇʀ ᴍᴜꜱᴏɴᴀ (ꜱᴄᴏTᴛʟᴀɴᴅ)
🔴 2026 WORLD CUP QUALIFIERS (CAF)
Group C Standings after 4 games played, with 6 Matches to go.
1. Rwanda 🇷🇼 7 Points
2. South Africa 🇿🇦 7 Points
3. Benin 🇧🇯 7 Points
4. Lesotho 🇱🇸 5 Points
5. Nigeria 🇳🇬 3 Points
6. Zimbabwe 🇿🇼 2 Points
