Zemura Wants Warriors To "Fight, Fight" And "See What Happens"
Udinese wingback Jordan Zemura is confident that the Warriors still have a strong chance of qualifying for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, with 18 points still up for grabs before the qualifiers conclude.
Ahead of Zimbabwe’s crucial Group C match against Benin on Thursday, March 20, in South Africa, Zemura said the Warriors are only five points behind the group leaders, meaning qualification is still within reach. Said Zemura:
We are obviously in a not-so-ideal situation as far as these World Cup qualifiers are concerned.
We are coming from the first four games where we failed to perform well.
This is not a good position to find ourselves in. But, we have six more games to play and 18 points to fight for. That gives us a fair chance, especially when we look at where the rest of the group stands.
Only five points separate us from the pacesetters in the group. But looking at the number of games we have to play, that’s a lot.
We need to give our all to it, giving maximum energy and concentration.
The details, both big and small, matter a lot. Attention is everything now.
Zemura, however, warned that Benin should never be underestimated, as they remain a strong contender for the World Cup spot. He said:
If you look at the composition of their squad, you get a full appreciation of who they really are.
They have a number of players enjoying good form in top leagues across the world, including the German Bundesliga, which is undoubtedly one of the best leagues on the planet.
You have to respect those players and the team in general. They are jointly leading the group that we are anchoring and that says a lot about their pedigree.
I have never played against Benin personally, and I guess the majority of my teammates haven’t either.
But we do have a rough idea of how they play. We will try to be compact and get going. The most important thing is to get started.
We haven’t won in four games, so we obviously need to ignite that spark and see how things will turn out for us.
At the end of the day, what we want to do is fight, fight and see what happens.
The Warriors will host Benin today at Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban, South Africa, before travelling to Uyo, Nigeria, to face the Super Eagles at Godswill Akpabio Stadium on March 25. Both matches are scheduled to kick off at 6 PM.
Currently, Rwanda, South Africa, and Benin lead Group C with 7 points each from 4 matches. Lesotho, Nigeria, and Zimbabwe follow with 5, 3, and 2 points, respectively.
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