THE delay in the opening group matches of Africa’s qualifying campaign for the 2022 World Cup might make the road to Qatar a bit more hazardous for our Warriors .

The opening games have been moved from June to September 2021.

Zimbabwe are in the same group as South Africa, Ghana and Ethiopia.

The last minute postponement was forced by the absence of stadiums approved by CAF in 22 of the confederation’s 54 member-countries. 

Those without approved grounds would have been forced to host on foreign grounds. 

It is feared this might have caused a few problems because of the COVID-19 restrictions on travel.

Not long ago, Zimbabwe had similar problems when most of its Warriors dotted around the globe had travel problems due COVID-19.

This meant the Zimbabwean team, without foreign-based players, would be seriously depleted.

The Warriors’ coaching department pleaded with the powers that-be to have the AFCON crucial matches postponed.

The answer was an emphatic ‘No’.

It’s now history, but the weakened Warriors went on to wallop Botswana on their home ground to qualify for the AFCON finals in Cameroon in January next year.

However, to this day, we believe a postponement of the Warriors’ games was justified. 

The very ‘No’ the Warriors got because of problems caused by the COVID-19 pandemic should have been the same ‘No’ for those who needed more time to put their grounds in order.

But let’s just pause for a minute.

If this had happened, Zimbabwe were due to face South Africa during the first week of June in Harare.

Meanwhile, the South African team, which recently failed dismally to qualify for the AFCON finals, is in a mess. 

Were they to meet the in-form Warriors that early, the struggling Bafana Bafana would have been reduced to cannon fodder .

However, Bafana Bafana now have a new coach with a very impressive CV.

Since the bulk of the South African team is made up of locals, by September, he should have moulded a very decent team. 

We believe CAF President Dr Patrice Motsepe from South Africa is aware of this.

Anyway, let’s hope CAF emergency committee decision to postpone the games to September was not influenced by this connection.

However, usually such strange coincidences tend to invite suspicion.

So, what the Warriors had hoped would be an easy opening fixture might not be so by September.

But of course, the Warriors always prefer beating Bafana Bafana when they are at their best.

We understand the Warriors had already cancelled friendly matches during the imminent window period, fearing that players might get hurt before the competitive game.

This has to be reversed so that the coaches will have as much time as possible mapping out combinations under competitive conditions.

Zdravko Logarusic, the Warriors team manager, has to cut short his vacation and be seen to be strategising for the impending tough matches.

He must remember football fans are very volatile.

He was held in high esteem after qualifying for the AFCON finals – the first foreign coach to do so.

Expectations are high and once he fails at the next hurdle, he might find the same fans jeering him.

But if Logarusic goes past Ghana, Ethiopia and South Africa in the preliminary round of World Cup 2022, he would have immortalised his stint as Zimbabwe’s national football coach.