FC Platinum coach Norman Mapeza has showered Premier Soccer League (PSL) newboys Simba Bhora with praise, describing them as one of the best assembled teams in the country’s top-flight.
Simba won the Northern Region Soccer League last year to earn promotion to the Premeir Soccer League.
Ahead of their debut campaign in the Premiership, the Simba Ndoro-owned side roped in former Dynamos coach Tonderai Ndiraya to be their head coach, as well as a number of players with PSL players and Mapeza believes they will be a difficult team to play against.
Speaking ahead of the two sides’ meeting at the National Sports Stadium tomorrow, Mapeza said: “We are facing a very good side. Everybody knew exactly what they have been doing during the pre-season, they have beefed up their squad.
“They are maybe one of the best assembled teams in the league at the moment, so it’s not gonna be easy for us when we go to Harare (for tomorrow’s match) but what is important is for us to go there with a positive mind, with the same hunger and desire that we showed in our last game against Bulawayo Chiefs,” he added.
Mapeza insists the fact that they will be playing team coming from Division One does not count because it’s a new look Simba side with players who have Premiership experience.
“Majority of the players who made the team to get promoted into the Premier League are no longer there and if you look at it, it’s like most of the guys who left Dynamos are now with Coach Ndiraya over there (at Simba) so it’s not gonna be easy,” said Mapeza.
“Majority of those players know exactly what Coach Ndiraya wants, so it’s gonna be tricky. But if it was the players who were playing in the First Division, we could say we can probably get something out of it. So we have to up our game because it’s not gonna be easy at all,” added Mapeza.
Among the players recruited by Simba is the former Dynamos duo of defender Partson Jaure and midfielder Keith Murera, former CAPS United defender Valentine Musarurwa, former Warriors winger Talent Chawapiwa, as well as midfielder Blessing Moyo, who won the championship with FC Platinum last season.
The Platinum miners have added to their firing line Perfect Chikwende and Jarrison Selemani.
