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Tadious Manyepo
Sports Reporter
THE Digital could be on its way for a sensational reunion with the Warriors.

Vitalis “Digital” Takawira is one of the candidates being earmarked for the role of team manager of the senior national football team.

The United States-based former Warriors forward has, in the past few years, been reaching out to his fatherland.

First, he made his son available to commit his international football future to the Warriors, rather than the United States, and now he could reunite with the national side as the team manager.

It could be a huge coup for ZIFA, if they manage to tie down the deal, with Takawira providing the link to the Dream Team era when the

Warriors were the toast of the entire nation under the late German coach Reinhard Fibisch in the early 1990s.

ZIFA have already started conducting interviews for short-listed candidates, almost one year after the post fell vacant.

And former Dynamos striker Takawira is among those set to appear before a ZIFA panel for the interviews although it appears unlikely for the ex-forward to dump his comfortable life in the United States for a job with a turbulent organisation like ZIFA.

Head coach, Zdravko Logarusic, who was appointed early this year, will have the ultimate say on who should occupy the position which for years was held by former Gunners administrator Wellington Mpandare.

Mpandare has also thrown his name in the hat and remains the firm favourite to retain his post.

However, he faces stiff competition from Takawira and 2006 Soccer Star of the Year Clement Matawu. Former Warriors striker Agent “Ajira” Sawu was also offered the job.

ZIFA president, Felton Kamambo, said the interviews are already underway and the appointment will be made in their board meeting expected late next month.

By that time, Logarusic would have returned from his home in Croatia where he has been holed for the past few months. “The Warriors manager’s position is part of a massive ZIFA project to revamp football in the country.

“We are already conducting interviews for the prospective candidates for that position.

“The manager will be named at the next ZIFA board meeting since all members of the board should have an input,” said Kamambo.

“We need someone who is thorough for this position and the interviews cover meticulous aspects and the best candidate will be appointed.

“The Warriors are the country’s flagship team and we need a well-groomed character whose traits are consistent with our values not only as an association but as a country.”

The Warriors manager was supposed to be named back in March ahead of the team’s back-to-back 2021 AFCON qualifiers against continental champions Algeria.

But, with all international football activities around the globe halted due to Covid-19, the appointment has been on hold ever since.

Zimbabwe will now play Algeria in November for the re-arranged qualifiers whose finals have since been postponed by a year to January 2022 in Cameroon.

And the country’s football mother body have to put their house in order including appointing a competent Warriors manager before what will be Logarusic’s first competitive fixture in charge of the Warriors.

Besides looking at appointing the Warriors manager, Kamambo said ZIFA are also in the process of recruiting office staff, including technical directors, as they intend to revamp their operations. He said the association has since received the go ahead from FIFA to embark on such a project.

“We have a lot of work to do as an association, but we have been lacking adequate human resources to drive our vision.

“We have said it over and over that we want our football to do the talking.

“We have an ambitious project which we are implementing at the moment which will see us appointing a technical director in each region and three more at the head office.

“We will also do the same for women and youth football. We will also appoint some office staff including accounting personnel as we want to be a fully-fledged organisation.”

He said Covid-19 has disrupted the association’s activities for this year, but plans have to go on.

“Yes, everyone has been affected but the most important thing is how to get going again.

“We have so many things, so many programmes which have been derailed by this pandemic but we cannot sit back and relax just because this pandemic is upon us.

“We should continue working. Remember we have a junior league which should be running, academies which need support so many things.

“The most important thing is how to lift ourselves up and implement our vision.”