HIGHLANDERS legend Zenzo Moyo has tipped the Bulawayo giants to win the 2023 Castle Lager Premier Soccer League title, judging by the team’s performance so far. Bosso are looking good to finally end a 17-year-long title drought.
The Bulawayo giants remain unbeaten after 15 league matches, winning eight, playing seven draws and amassing 31 points in the process. They made a huge statement on Sunday when they opened a four-point lead on the log table after edging Herentals 1-0 at Mandava Stadium, courtesy of a Melikhaya Ncube goal.
Moyo won three titles with Highlanders in the 1998-1999 season when he was also crowned Soccer Star of the Year and also won the Golden Boot Award with 22 goals, in 2000 and in 2006 when Bosso last won the championship. The former Highlanders striker is confident that this is the Bulawayo giants’ year.
“Highlanders will win it this year. It is promising. They should continue to make people happy. The boys have what it takes. They just have to believe in themselves,” Moyo said.
More than half of the 13 goals Highlanders have scored have come from defenders and midfielders and Moyo attributed it to the country’s lack of forceful strikers who can “bang in goals”.
“We no longer have those strikers who used to bang in the goals and I think it has to do with coaches’ formations. The coaches in our league sign defensive strikers,” he said.
Highlanders are targeting Bulawayo Chiefs’ Obriel Chirinda who scored a hat trick on Sunday when The Ninjas ran riot over Triangle with a 3-0 win having scored a brace in the previous match when beat Caps United. After defeating Herentals on Sunday, coach Baltemar Brito gave credit to his players.
“It was a good game, we played against a good team. All these performances since round one are credited to the players. “We are just coaching them, but the players are putting up the spirit in the field of play,” Brito said.
Brito has built his side on a mean defence which has let in just four goals so far this term. Dark horses Manica Diamonds were victorious, beating Cranborne Bullets 1-0 and they are on position three on the log table with 26 points, a point behind Ngezi Platinum, who slumped once again losing 1-0 at home to Simba Bhora.
Dynamos also picked up maximum points after edging Chicken Inn and they are now on the fourth spot with 25 points, at par with reighning champions FC Platinum, who suffered a home defeat to Yadah on Saturday after last weekend’s goalless draw to Dynamos at BF.
Chicken Inn dropped to position seven. It is looking good for Chiefs’ new coach Joseph Sibindi who has won two of his games since he took over from Lizwe Sweswe. It was a good weekend for Zimbabwe’s big three clubs with Caps United ending a lean spell to pick up maximum points against GreenFuel at Bata stadium in Gweru on Saturday.
Source Newsday
