Kadevere’s absence from action over the two legs against Cameroon in the final round of the All-Africa Games qualifier was perhaps understandable, given that he had not seen much action at City by that time.
But he has been such a hit since scoring a sensational individual goal from the bench in his side’s 2-1 victory over FC Platinum in April that any attempt to ignore his emergence as the top young striker in the league would ultimately prove futile.
For the first leg against Swaziland at Rufaro Stadium, Pasuwa started with Highlanders star Thomas Chidewu as his first choice striker. The teenager, who has scored just one goal for the Bulawayo side so far this season, was clearly low on confidence and struggled to make an impact.
Yet some were perplexed that when Pasuwa decided to bring in reinforcements, he went for How Mine’s Mgcini Sibanda ahead of the red-hot Kadevere, who could not do much after being thrown in towards the end of the match.
Kadewere scored his fourth goal of the season in City’s 2-0 win over Chapungu on Friday, before he rose from the bench to find the target again, albeit for Zimbabwe – two days later.
Pasuwa has defied the odds to reach the finals of the All-Africa Games and now the final round of the CAF U-23 Championship qualifiers. The absence of key players like Walter Musona and Kuda Mahachi, and the typically shambolic nature of the preparations, has meant the odds have always been heavily stacked against the former Dynamos and former Zimbabwe senior national team midfielder.
But it takes a brilliant player like Kadewere to occasionally prove such a coach wrong.
Zimbabwe stand a good chance of beating South Africa to reach the U-23 Championships, where Africa’s representatives for the Brazil Olympics will be decided. Pasuwa can help himself, his team, and the nation at large by keeping tabs of the current form of his players.
Post published in: Football