Warriors coach Sunday Chidzambwa has given credit to his predecessor Norman Mapeza for laying the foundation for Zimbabwe’s qualification for the Africa Cup of Nations in Egypt.

Mapeza set the ball rolling at the start of the campaign convincingly beating Liberia 3-0 in the first match.

“I want to thank and give credit to Norman Mapeza for starting this job. I want to thank him for the hard work he put in winning the first match which set the tone for our qualification,” said Chidzambwa.

“I would also like to thank Zimbabweans for coming out in their numbers to support the team. I was really pleased that they didn’t put the team under pressure by booing them. This was a team effort, and I greatly appreciate that.”

Zimbabwe topped the group with 11 points, two ahead of runners up, the Democratic Republic of Congo.