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Ephraim Chawanda

Sikhumbuzo Moyo, Senior Sports Reporter
LEGENDARY former Zimbabwe Saints and Dream Team captain, Ephraim Chawanda, is ready to return to the Warriors’ set-up in any capacity if his former Warriors teammate Bruce Grobbelaar lands the national team head coach post.

Grobbelaar, fondly known as the “Jungleman” during his playing days, told our Harare Bureau last week that he was ready to revive his romance with the Warriors and was confident of bringing back the glory days of the early 1990s when they became one of the most feared sides on the continent under the late German coach Reinhard Fabisch.

Chawanda, who earned himself the nickname “Rock of Gibraltar” for his steadiness in defence, said he was ready to serve his country.

“I would definitely love to serve my country in any capacity as either assistant coach or manager. All we need to do is to put football at heart first then everything else will fall into place.

“We need to approach all the faculties of football with open minds, best intentions and most of all logic. Remember one of the most important aspects of football is time. Let everything else related to football be done on time,” said Chawanda from his base in Botswana.

He said the appointment of Grobbelaar, if it happens, “would steer us in a better direction”.

The former Liverpool goalkeeper said his heart bled for Zimbabwe when he watched them making an early exit from the just-ended 2017 Africa Cup of Nations in Gabon and he would like to return to the “trenches” and be part of the Warriors’ technical department during their qualifiers of the next Afcon scheduled for 2019 in Cameroon.

Grobbelaar, who won the then European Cup (now Champions League) with English soccer giants Liverpool in 1984, said although he was now based in Canada, Zimbabwe still had a “special place” in his heart and he won’t resist a call for national duty and was prepared to serve in any capacity if approached by Zifa.

@skhumoyo2000