The ManicaPost
Senior Sports Reporter
2014 Castle Lager Premiership Soccer Star of the Year Dennis Dauda – whose outstanding partnership with Justice Jangano in the heart of CAPS United defence during the Caf Champions League tie against TP Mazembe on Sunday earned the Zimbabwe champions a group stage ticket – believes his team has the depth in talent to face any given opponent in the group stage of the prestigious continental football competition.
Dauda was a marvel to watch in CAPS United defence together with former Gunners defender Jangano as they repelled everything that their opponents threw at them to help the Green Machine book a berth in the lucrative group stage of the 2017 Caf Champions League.
After being placed in Pot D with Saint George S.C of Ethiopia, Zanaco of Zambia and Clube Ferroviario da Beira of Mozambique, CAPS United now await the draw to know the other three clubs that will be in their group.
The other three clubs that will be in the same group with CAPS United will be picked from the other pots and that means CAPS United will not meet Saint George S.C, Zanaco or Clube Ferroviario da Beira in the group stages of the competition.
Although the date for the draw has been widely touted as April 7 ahead of the start of the group stage matches on May 12, there has not been official Caf communiqué on the actual date of the draw.
Be that as it may, Dauda believes his team has the depth in talent to face any opponent in the group stages of the prestigious continental football competition.
The former ZPC Kariba player, who won the coveted Soccer Star of the Year award albeit his club ending the season on second position in 2014 said the fact that they outplayed TP Mazembe – five time Caf Champions League winners – means they can face any other club in the tournament.
“I think we can play any other team on the continent and still get the result that we want. We played TP Mazembe and we got the result that we wanted so what can stop us from doing the same with any other team given TP Mazembe’s pedigree.
“We are waiting for the draw knowing that we are ready for any opponent. There is really no opponent that we would prefer over the other given that at this stage of the competition there is no small team,” said Dauda.
The soft spoken defender said the motivation in CAPS United camp is not really about money but hunger for success.
“We are aware that we are playing against some well resourced teams on the continent. Even when we played in the domestic league last season, some teams were far much better resourced than us but we still managed to win the championship.
“The current crop of players at CAPS United are not really motivated by money but hunger for success.
“We are playing as a team and we just need to achieve more as a team,” said Dauda.
Caps United dumped five time champions TP Mazembe out of the CAF Champions League, to book themselves a place in the group stage with a nil all draw in a second leg second round match played at the National Sports Stadium in Harare on Sunday.
Keeping the DRC outfit at bay all afternoon was all the Green Machine needed to qualify to the next stage on away goals rule after the first leg had finished one all in Kinshasa.
While there was nothing to talk about in the second leg in terms of goals, Abbas Amidu’s 44 seconds goal away in DRC proved crucial for Caps United, who now await a draw in the last 16.
This is the first time that CAPS United have reached the group stage of the Caf Champions League and also became the Zimbabwean third team to attain such a feat after Monomotapa and Dynamos.
Fondly referred to mainly in the past as Cup Kings, the Green Machine just relived that title, causing one of the biggest upset in recent times by eliminating the feared giants out the CAF Champions League competition.
Of course, apart from the impressive backline, Caps United also needed the alertness of goalkeeper Edmore ‘Zikeeper’ Sibanda, who made wonderful saves to keep the aggregate scoreline at one all.
The seeding for CCL draw:
POOL A CCL
Al Ahly SC (EGY)
Zamalek SC (EGY)
Étoile Sportive du Sahel (TUN)
Mamelodi Sundowns (RSA)
POOL B CCL
Al Hilal (SUD)
Espérance de Tunis (TUN)
USM Alger (ALG)
Wydad Casablanca (MOR0
POOL C CCL
Al-Merrikh (SUD)
Coton Sport (CA)]
AS Vita (DRC)
Al-Ahli Tripoli (LBY)
POOL D CCL
Saint George S.C. (ETH)
Zanaco (ZAM)
Caps United (ZIM)
Clube Ferroviário da Beira (MOZ)
