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Tadious Manyepo Sports Reporter

CONFEDERATION of African Football (CAF) president Patrice Motsepe has welcomed the recent readmission of Zimbabwe into international football following 17 months in the wilderness.

Zimbabwe was jettisoned from international football by FIFA on account of “external intervention” in the running of ZIFA in 2022.

The country would endure close to two years without international football before the suspension was lifted in July last year.

But that was well after the country lost some key opportunities including failing to play the 2023 African Cup of Nations qualifiers whose final tournament was held in Cote d’Ivoire from January 13 to February 11.

Zimbabwe had been included in the same qualifying group, Group K together with Liberia, Morocco, and South Africa before being withdrawn from qualifiers.

South Africa and Morocco qualified for the finals with Bafana Bafana finishing third.

The hosts won the trophy after edging Nigeria 2-1 in the final on Sunday night.

And leaders of the ZIFA Normalisation Committee, who are currently driving the game in the country including its chairman Lincoln Mutasa attended the fiesta from which Motsepe spoke glowingly about Zimbabwe.

“I am excited I had a meeting with the chairman of the normalisation committee (Mutasa),” Motsepe said.

“We missed Zimbabwe (when the country was under suspension).

“They have a good footballing legacy and we missed them. I am happy they are now back.”

Motsepe’s admiration of Zimbabwe’s football is probably influenced by his love for players from this country.

An array of players from here have played for his South African club Mamelodi Sundowns.

They include Peter Ndlovu, Nyasha Mushekwi, Esrom Nyandoro, Khama Billiat, Kuda Mahachi, and Method Mwanjali among others.

“Some of the best players have come from Zimbabwe and played for Mamelodi Sundowns,” Motsepe said.

“Peter Ndlovu still works for Sundowns and I am so happy (that Zimbabwe is back to international football). We were incomplete without Zimbabwe.

“I am happy that Zimbabwe is back home and football in Zimbabwe is (glorious).”

Meanwhile, the ZIFA Normalisation Committee has appointed former Zimbabwe Saints star Jethro Hunidzarira as the association’s technical director.

He replaces the long-serving Wilson Mutekede who was fired by the Zifa NC recently.

Hunidzarira yesterday unpacked his blueprint anchored on junior development during a press briefing at the ZIFA Normalisation Committee offices.

“We want to first retain where we used to be in the past and then surpass that level as well,” he said.

“We have a masterplan to achieve that. We will establish a ZIFA national academy and vibrant junior leagues as well.

“We will partner with the Government through the Sports and Education ministries to be able to fully implement our vision.

“We have to hit the ground running. At the moment, I am still looking at what’s on the ground and what we have so that we see the direction to take.

“There are a lot of issues we have to address first.”