IN-FORM Orlando Pirates striker, Tendai Ndoro will be rewarded for his purple patch in form, with Warriors coach, Kalisto Pasuwa set to include him in the squad to face Malawi at home in a must-win 2017 Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) football qualifier early next month that will be announced soon.
But the position he plays is also played by nimble-footed Nyasha Mushekwi.
Although Pasuwa is yet to name the squad to prepare for battle against Malawi on June 4 in Harare, information obtained yesterday has it that Ndoro, who turns out for South African Premiership side, Orlando Pirates, is a major change in the squad that played against Swaziland in April during the Easter holiday.
Pasuwa has decided against tinkering with the squad that walloped Swaziland 4-0 at the National Sports Stadium — a result that lifted the team to the top of Group L, with eight points, with Guinea and Swaziland sharing second spot with five points each.
Ndoro’s inclusion in the squad will be the major talking point, as Pasuwa prepares his men for battle.
The former Chicken Inn striker will come in as direct competition to Nyasha Mushekwi for the Number 9 role.
Ndoro has scored five league goals in 10 starts. Mushekwi has also been doing well, scoring five goals from nine league matches in the Chinese second-tier league, as his team Dalian Yifang push for promotion.
Dalian Yifang are currently sitting second on the league table behind Qingdao Huanghai, who have 21 points.
Brazilians Luis Fabiano (7), Japa and Serbian Dorde Rakic (6) are the only players to score more than Mushekwi so far.
Ndoro has been pushing his own case since he was given an opportunity by club coach Eric Tinkler, scoring regularly towards the end of the season.
He has already been touted as one of the men to watch at this year’s Cosafa Castle Cup in Namibia if Pasuwa decides to call him up.
Cosafa, on their website, recently acknowledged Ndoro, as one of the outstanding Zimbabwean strikers.
“Zimbabwe is packed with talented forwards, but one who has come into his own in recent months is Tendai Ndoro.
“The striker has netted eight goals in his last six starts for South Africa Premiership side Orlando Pirates and is arguably in the form of his life.
“He faces stiff competition to get into the Zimbabwe line-up, but if selected he will be confident of continuing to bang in the goals,” wrote Cosafa.
According to the website, Ndoro has been rated among the top 10 players to watch at Cosafa from the 14 nations.
Ndoro initially struggled to get into the starting line up after joining from Black Aces, but once he got his chance, he became a regular.
The Warriors are also set to play Uganda at the end of the month in a friendly ahead of the clash against the Flames of Malawi.
Uganda will camp in Zimbabwe for two weeks, as they prepare for their next Afcon qualifier against Botswana and yesterday they named a squad that will prepare for the Warriors match.
The Warriors are set to group after the weekend to begin preparations for the two matches.
They need to win against Malawi and then force at least a draw in their last match against Guinea in September for them to qualify for the biennial soccer showpiece for the first time since 2006.
- News Day
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