Ovidy reveals Warriors game plan

Makomborero Mutimukulu in Cairo, Egypt

Zimbabwe Warriors vice-captain Ovidy Karuru reckons the key to unlocking Uganda in Wednesday’s Group A Afcon clash is embedded in combination plays.

At a pre-match press conference at the Cairo International Stadium here on Tuesday, the Zimbabwean vice-captain noted that Ugandan goalkeeper Dennis Onyango is a good shot stopper who also happens to be familiar with several Warriors players.

“The fact that Dennis knows us is an advantage to him but we also know him and that is an advantage to us,” said Karuru.

“We know that Onyango is a good goalkeeper and when playing against him, you don’t need to shoot from a distance because he is very good at shot-stopping. If you want to beat him, you have to focus on combination plays, get into the box and tap home.”

Zimbabwe struggled to fashion out any meaningful chances in the opening day 0-1 defeat to hosts Egypt on Friday but the Southern Africans believe they have managed to flush out the gremlins that choked their play in the final third.

“We made bad decisions against Egypt in the attacking third: we shot when we were supposed to pass and passed when we were supposed to shoot,” added Karuru.

“But it’s something that we have been working on at training and hope to put right when we play against Uganda. We know how important this game is for us. It is a game that will determine how far we will go in this tournament.

“As players, we know that we need to win against Uganda and are determined to get the three points. It will not be easy, but we are ready for them.”

Uganda will go into the match high on confidence after prevailing 2-0 over DR Congo in their opening Group A game.

A win for the Cranes will see them book a place in the knockout stages while defeat for the Warriors could spell doom for their dream of making it out of the group stages for the first time.