The Warriors might have picked just two points from their opening two matches of the 2026 Fifa World Cup group qualifying campaign, but coach Baltemar Brito is happy with the direction the team is taking.
Zimbabwe were largely unconvincing in their Group C opener against hosts Rwanda at the Huye Stadium on Wednesday last week but fought gallantly in the second game on Sunday to hold Nigeria to a one-all draw at the same venue.
Walter Musona thundered in a cracker from a freekick, an effort that was later cancelled out by former Manchester City striker Kelechi Iheanacho.
Brito's men bossed the first half of the game against their more illustrious opponents, and while they slowed the tempo in the second half as they tried to defend their earlier gain, the Warriors created the better chances of the second stanza.
Marshall Munetsi, Tanaka Shandirwa, Teenage Hadebe and Devine Lunga all missed golden opportunities late on to win the absorbing contest, in which all the Warriors players played their hearts out.
Goalkeeper Donovan Bernard bellied his young age with a flawless performance. Andrew Mbeba, a bundle of nerves against Rwanda, was more assured at right back position while the combination of the exciting Jordan Zemura, goal-scorer Musona and the debutant Andy Rinemhota on the left was fluid and slick.
Gerald Takwara and Teenage Hadebe looked as solid as ever in central defence, with captain Marvelous Nakamba and Marshal Munetsi doing the grafting work in midfield.
Up front, Tino Kadewere and Prince Dube did their job of keeping the Nigeria defenders on their toes, with their darting runs in the areas behind causing havoc and creating pockets of spaces for late runner Munetsi to exploit.
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Even the substitutes Munashe Garan’anga, Shandirwa, Lunga and Obriel Chirinda played their part well.
The Warriors' performance was so good that the draw certainly felt like a loss.
Brito, who had a full complement of the squad for the second game, unlike against Rwanda, felt his side's performance warranted a win against the former three-times African champions.
While disappointed that they couldn't get the win, he expressed satisfaction with the direction the team is going and is hoping that the work ethic, unity, and the camaraderie that was in camp can continue and lead to something incredible for the nation.
“This is a process, it's only our second game of the qualifiers,” Brito said.
“This was our first camp with the whole team. We certainly feel the difference from the other two camps. We don't need only to build chemistry inside the field but off it as well, including the organisation around the team. In this camp we feel it's better than the last ones. Everyone has a positive mindset which brings a positive vibe. There is much respect between the players and the technical staff. There were no bad messages behind each other, and this is beautiful.”
But the Brazilian has warned his players to keep their guard up following the successful trip to Rwanda.
“We were playing against teams that have been playing together for a long time and had dynamics, and for us we are still in the process. We should not relax because we drew against Nigeria. Our mind should be set to improve. Sometimes people fall asleep when they get something good, and we shouldn't do that. This is a good start, and we need to build on from this going forward,” Brito said.
A lack of cutting edge upfront is an area that is of great concern to Brito.
“We had a lot of chances but in football to win, you have to score. We scored one, a beautiful goal by Musona. They (Nigeria) had one or two chances; they didn't create any dangerous situations in our box. For us, we had good situations at the end, and I feel we should have killed off the game.”
Sunday's draw left Zimbabwe and Nigeria on two points each after the first two rounds of matches.
South Africa lead the standings with three points from their win over Benin in their opener, a lead they will extend if they beat Rwanda in Butare this afternoon.
Other group C member Lesotho has one point from their drawn match against Nigeria last week. They host Benin in their second game of the campaign today.
Zimbabwe's next game is at home to Lesotho in March next year.
The team that will finish top of the group will automatically qualify to the 2026 World Cup finals to be hosted in the Americas.
