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Veronica Gwaze-Sports Reporter

PREMIER Soccer League side Chegutu Pirates will be banking on the presence of striker Tinotenda Chiunye when they face Yadah in a Castle Lager Premier Soccer League match at the Heart Stadium this afternoon.

Chiunye recently completed his move to the league debutants from Botswana Premier League outfit Tafic to make a delayed but stylish debut last weekend when the Chegutu based side registered their second win of the season, beating Hwange 2-1 at Baobab.

The 24-year-old former ZPC star grabbed a beauty to propel his side into the lead while Sipho Ndlovu equalised for the coalminers and Gift Mwinga scored the winning goal for the Emmanuel Day Gutu led side.

Chiunye charmed Gutu with his grand entry and the coach feels that his presence could be what the team needed to cure their goal scoring crisis.

“It may not be about an individual player but when a coach or club engages a particular player, they know what the player can give them so here we were in a fix because of the delay in getting the international clearance.

“As a player, Chiunye brings in creativity to the team, he has a commendable ability to score goals and create assists just as he proved on his debut.

“Above all he is an excellent team player who brings in experience on the team as well.”

Gutu is satisfied with his acquisition and notes that Chiunye’s presence is a confidence booster for the team.

“We cannot talk about winning (against Hwange) without mentioning him because he played an important part,” said Gutu.

He added: “The fact that he has previously played for CAPS United, Dynamos and also represented the Zimbabwe national team at Under 17 and 20 levels means he has so much for us on the table.

“The win (against Hwange) was very encouraging for me as a coach and the players as well; in the past we have created few scoring chances which I felt we needed to improve. We also had challenges in converting the very few chances that we created so we needed him to boost the squad upfront.”

Gutu believes the battle at Heart Stadium this afternoon will be won in attack and is pinning his hopes on Chiunye.

“My message is all about consistency to the team and him as well after the show they put up last week. Success lies in relentless execution of basics and I am happy that slowly we are getting it right.

“I know fans were somehow losing it in the past but I plead with them to be a bit more patient.

“Chiunye is one of the seasoned players, who can handle anything thrown at them, I believe he will spark in this game and help us collect the maximum points. He is also very good with or without the ball and he should be able to handle any situation.”

Fixtures 

Today: FC Platinum v Bikita Minerals (Mandava), ZPC Kariba v Arenel Movers (Nyamhunga), GreenFuel v Herentals (GreenFuel), Yadah v Chegutu Pirates (Heart Stadium)

Tomorrow: Manica Diamonds v CAPS Utd (Sakubva), Highlanders v Chicken Inn (Barbourfields), Hwange v Ngezi Platinum (Colliery), Dynamos v TelOne (Rufaro), Bulawayo Chiefs v Simba Bhora (Luveve)