History shows that the reigning Zimbabwean champions are yet to come back from such a huge first leg defeat against north African opposition. They therefore, have a tall order against Bizertin.
What is also worrying is the fact that Dynamos have played 11 games against Tunisian opposition and have only managed three wins against a massive eight losses.
Worse still, Dynamos have, since 1998, scored only four goals against teams from Tunisia, against the 16 they have conceded.
DeMbare will need a 4-0 win to progress to the second round through open play, yet even at home, they have failed to score such a high number of goals even against weaker opposition.
Yet coach, Kalisto Pasuwa was still hopeful early this week that the Harare giants would tear the history books to shreds and score the four goals they need to sail through.
“ We will need to attack from the first whistle and get a lot of goals in the first half,” said the former DeMbare midfield maestro.
“They scored three at their home ground, so we can also score four at Rufaro. They are not as strong as our loss suggested. We can beat them heavily.”
While attack will be the priority, Pasuwa will also have to tighten his defence in the wake, which conceded three goals in 45 minutes in the first encounter.
The departure of Simba Sithole, and Roderick Mutuma seems to have weakened Dynamos’ sting, but Russell Madamombe, Borban Ziruntusa, Farai Mupasiri, and Francis Zikumbawire will have to produce something out of the ordinary on Sunday.
The Zimbabwean champions need to prevent a trend that has seen them fail to go past the second round since 2010, which could see the country lose one of its two slots in continental competitions.
Post published in: Football