As Dynamos’ woes continue amid a slow start to the season which has seen them conceding a streak of consecutive defeats, everyone affiliated to the fading giants must be wondering what the problem is.
By Lawrence Tichaona Mangenje
On Monday, they succumbed to yet another embarrassing league loss to Herentals, a side who, with all due respect, literally play with ten men every time 47-year old Innocent Benza is on the pitch.
DeMbare are to blame for this mess they find themselves in after failing to set the pace early in the race when their loyal fans expect them to put a better performance and challenge for the title following a disappointing previous campaign in which they survived the relegation by a whisker.
But it’s never too late, and a reality check is needed if the club is to progress.
The entry point is that the name Dynamos no longer attracts the best players on the market as it was in the past.
Players nowadays think with their stomachs and the ‘glamour’ associated with donning the famous blue and white jersey is no longer a tempting factor for them. The club executive needs to accept and shun the big brother attitude they inherited from the previous administration, that it is every player’s wish to play for Dynamos, forthwith.
They need to usher-in projects that will see them having the financial muscle to compete for the best players on the market, with the likes of F.C Platinum and Ngezi Platinum Stars.
Though they roped in a new sponsor ahead of the 2019 season, the deal will only help to improve the welfare of the players not moving the club, as a whole institution, to a higher and more professional level.
It is astonishing to grasp that the Harare giants, arguably the biggest club in the country with a rich history, do not even have a shop in the CBD which sells their replica jerseys.
The manner in which Dynamos fans throw money at their players at Rufaro is a clear illustration that they are capable of contributing financially, so it is apparent that they would support an initiative like a jerseys shop.
DeMbare cannot depend on gate takings which have dropped considerably in recent times due to the team’s poor show. As such, the club is only realising a low revenue, since the other money goes to the Harare City Council, a result of not having their own stadium in any case.
Additionally, Dynamos need to accept the reality that old horses like Edward Sadomba cannot give them the attacking impetus they need upfront.
With all due respect, the 35-year old is not the striker who can orchestrate a title challenge for DeMbare and in acquiring his services, the club made the same mistake like that of signing Kingston Nkatha last season.
Even in Europe, clubs let go of strikers of that age, like what Manchester United did on Zlatan Ibrahimović and even all-time leading goal scorer Wayne Rooney.
One can’t keep them and expect a meaningful title challenge, and that is the reality in football.
So for DeMbare to anticipate a title-chase courtesy of a Sadomba-led attack would be ballyhooing the former Libyan-based forward.
The Glamour Boys have been in need of a top marksman for a long time and Christian Epoupa’s signature in 2017 would have been the panacea to that problem had they kept him.
Quite frankly, it is because of the Cameroonian’s individual brilliance that the Glamour Boys managed a flattering second-place finish in 2017, otherwise, they have been in a crisis for a long time.
Just to close this case, Dynamos’ struggle is an institutional one and not a tactical problem, hence even the sacking of coach Lloyd Chigowe will not solve the problem, but a reality-check will.
Feedback: lawmangenje10@gmail.com
