Warriors faces Bafana Bafana in another regular showdown against Liberia,s Lone Star and the duel against Morocco’s Atlas Lions.
That’s the story of the Warriors, in their quest to qualify for the 2023 AFCON finals, in Cote d’Ivoire.
In the draw, which was conducted in Johannesburg yesterday, Zimbabwe were placed in Group K which features South Africa, Morocco and Liberia.
The Warriors have been regular sparring partners with the Lone Star of Liberia and Knowledge Musona scored a hat-trick against them, in their last meeting, at the National Sports Stadium.
Bafana Bafana were part of the group of teams, which the Warriors took on, in the 2022 World Cup qualifiers.
The group also featured Ghana and Ethiopia.
The first match at the National Sports Stadium ended in a goalless draw before the Warriors lost the reverse fixture in South Africa 0-1.
The Black Stars eventually won the group and, after going on to beat Nigeria’s Super Eagles, they are now on their way to Qatar.
The last time the Warriors battled the Atlas Lions, in the qualifiers, was for the 2008 AFCON finals, during Charles Mhlauri’s tenure as coach.
The two teams drew at Rufaro but the Atlas Lions won at home.
Bafana Bafana legend, Lucas Radebe, was part of the cast who conducted the draw.
“I think we are capable,” he said. “We just need to beat Morocco. “Our neghbours, we can deal with them, some of them are here.
“It’s a good group, I think I’m confident (of Bafana Bafana’s progress).
The South Africans have missed two of the last three AFCON finals while the Warriors have made it on all three occasions in Gabon, Egypt and Cameroon.
With the Zambians missing the last three Nations Cup finals, the Warriors can rightly claim to be the strongest football team in the region.
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“Bafana Bafana are a top team,” said Ivorian legend, Salomon Kalou, who conducted the draw.
“They need to come back to the frontline.
“I think they are capable of qualifying in this group.”
However, Zimbabwe’s participation in the qualifiers will still depend on the country’s suspension from international football being lifted.
CAF have made it clear that if the suspension is not lifted, two weeks before the start of the qualifiers, the Warriors and the Harambee Stars of Kenya, will be thrown out of the tournament.
The two countries could not be drawn in the same group because of fears that, should they both remain suspended, it could trigger complications in the group.
“Zimbabwe and Kenya, who are both banned from international football, will only participate in the competition if they meet FIFA’s demands two weeks before the games begin,” CAF said in a statement.
“If the bans are not lifted on time, the sides will be eliminated from the competition and only three teams will be involved in their groups, with the top two progressing to the finals.
“The winners and runners-up of each group will automatically qualify for the finals in June next year.”
The qualifiers will begin in June, which means that the impasse in domestic football will have to be resolved by mid-next month.
The ZIFA Congress will hold an extra-ordinary meeting in Harare on Saturday which the Councillors hope could provide a resolution to the impasse.
Group A: São Tomé and Príncipe/Mauritius, Guinea-Bissau, Sierra Leone, Nigeria.
Group B: Eswatini, Togo, Cape Verde, Burkina Faso.
Group C: Burundi, Namibia, Kenya, Cameroon.
Group D: Ethiopia, Malawi, Guinea, Egypt.
Group E: Central African Republic, Angola, Madagascar, Ghana.
Group F: Tanzania, Niger, Uganda, Algeria.
Group G: South Sudan, Gambia, Congo, Mali.
Group H: Lesotho, Comoros, Zambia, Ivory Coast.
Group I: Sudan, Mauritania, Gabon, DR Congo.
Group J: Botswana, Libya, Equatorial Guinea, Tunisia.
Group K: Liberia, Zimbabwe, South Africa, Morocco.
Group L: Rwanda, Mozambique, Benin, Senegal.
