Mwanjali thrilled by CAPS return

MWANJALIPetros Kausiyo Deputy Sports Editor
FORMER Zimbabwe skipper Method Mwanjali says it feels great to return to CAPS United, six years after he left the Green Machine to join South African Premiership giants Mamelodi Sundowns.

Mwanjali, who has also played for Mpumalanga Black Aces in the South African top-flight league, is one of six mid-season acquisitions set to be unveiled by CAPS United at a media function in the capital this afternoon.

CAPS United, eager to revive their fortunes and become a powerhouse again, have been busy on the transfer market, even going beyond the country’s borders to such uncharted grounds like Equatorial Guinea in search of talent.

The Premiership giants, who will host Harare City at the National Sports Stadium on Sunday, will also unveil Zambian defender Michael Mwenya, who recently signed a three-year deal but had to wait for a work permit which the former Lime Hotspurs man has now been granted.

Big Oscar Machapa and bustling striker Dominic Chungwa have also made their way back to the Green Machine and should join Warriors and centre back Justice Jangano among those to be unveiled today.

Although CAPS United officials chose not discuss much about the new acquisitions, at least until today’s ceremony, there is no doubting that the versatile Mwanjali is the player with the biggest profile given his vast experience.

Mwanjali has been inactive since leaving Sundowns and the former Warriors captain traced his roots to the club that eventually gave him the springboard to purse a professional career in South Africa.

The 32-year old defender, who is equally at home as a midfielder, was recently cleared by ZIFA of the Asiagate match-fixing allegations, paving the way for him to play on the domestic front.

Mwanjali who was the Warriors captain at the time of the alleged match-fixing scam, had been handed a life ban by ZIFA but he continued to play in South Africa as FIFA declined to endorse the Asiagate sanctions to give them a worldwide effect.

Yesterday Mwanjali began training with the Green Machine as he also finalised his contract terms with the CAPS United management with the defender revealing that he had spent the last few months training with his boyhood club Hwange as he weighed his options.

Mwanjali said he felt happy to be back at CAPS United and was relishing the opportunity of reviving the romance he had had with the club’s fans.

“It is great to be back home. Home is home and because I am back home I will not feel under any pressure at all,’’ Mwanjali said.

His return to CAPS United also gives him a chance to re-unite with Leonard Tsipa in the current CAPS United squad. Although he does not hide his disappointment over the Asiagate saga, Mwanjali insisted he would not discuss much about the matter which he indicated he would “want to forget in a hurry’’.

“I just want to forget the Asiagate case quickly. It did not help anyone except to tarnish our images. But at the end of the day life must go on and life goes on so I am looking forward to playing for CAPS United again. I have been training with Hwange all along, I had gained weight while at Sundowns because I was no longer playing but the training has helped me a lot.

“Of course, I still have to shed a little more weight in order to get into shape and I think within the next month or so I will be at the peak of my shape’’.

Mwanjali also welcomed the decision by CAPS United to blend youth and experience as they look to mount a stronger challenge in the second half of the season.

“As senior players we have to lead by example.

“I have been through the road and I have been captain before and I will take it as an honour with the young guys.

“I have had the privilege of being captain of the two South African clubs I played for and I will be willing to share my experience with those wishing to go outside the country especially to South Africa, I will give them advice because I am here like a bother to them and from what I have seen we are one big happy family at CAPS United’’.

Mwanjali said although he was not keenly following the local game of late, he still believed the Castle Lager Premiership has quality players to excite the crowds as the championship race gathers momentum.

“I cannot really evaluate the standards of the local game because I have not been closely following it but what I know is that we have good players. If you have players going out of the country all the time, I think it tells a lot about our standards and it shows that our football is good’’.

Mwanjali, who captained the Warriors to their last COSAFA Cup success in 2009, also spoke about the potential of the senior team and reckoned that the national side was being shortchanged by the administration.

“I think we have the quality to qualify for the African Cup of Nations and the CHAN (African Nations Championships) but what we lack is the organisation. We do not have guidance from the top, we have players all over Europe and I think we can go places,’’ Mwanjali said.

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