The ManicaPost
ZIMBABWE will have to do more with their latest brigade of British based players to earn a place among the top 100 football playing nations after the country moved one place down the latest Fifa rankings to settle at 103.
The Warriors are 25th in Africa. The country was last among the top 100 in 2011 when the Warriors’ occupied the 98th position.
In the October rankings, Zimbabwe was 104. The latest round of FIFA world rankings have been confirmed, with the top five remaining unmoved as Germany continue to head the list.
Die Mannschaft sit just above Brazil in top spot while Portugal, Argentina and Belgium complete the top five after the recent round of FIFA calendar fixtures and 2018 World Cup qualifiers.
Spain, meanwhile, climbed two places to now sit sixth while France have dropped two places and find themselves ninth, while Chile complete the top 10.
On the British front, Wales’ failure to qualify for the World Cup in Russia saw them plummet five places in the rankings while Italy climbed one place to 14, despite also missing a ticket to next year’s world showpiece.
In Africa, Stuart Baxter’s men have raken a number of steps back as they now find themselves down in 81st place overall, following their back-to-back defeats to Senegal earlier this month.
Baxter’s first six months at the helm has seen Bafana’s ranking on a rollercoaster ride, climbing from 65th to 64th in July, back down to 66th in August, right down to 80th in September, back up to 74th in October, and they now find themselves in their lowest position since 2012.
Meanwhile, the Lions of Teranga are amongst the biggest movers this month, having risen nine places to 23rd on the overall standings, leapfrogging Egypt and Tunisia as Africa’s top-ranked nation.
The Eagles of Carthage have moved up one place to 27th in the overall standings, while the Pharoahs have slipped one place to 31st in the world.
DR Congo (36th) and Morocco (40th) complete the continent’s top five, with the latter having jumped a massive eight places following their 2018 World Cup qualification.
South Africa have dropped two places from 16th to 18th in the CAF rankings.
CAF Top 10 (World ranking):
- Senegal (23)
- Tunisia (27)
- Egypt (31)
- DR Congo (36)
- Morocco (40)
- Burkina Faso (44)
- Cameroon (45)
- Nigeria (50)
- Ghana (51)
- Cote D’Ivoire (61)
FIFA world rankings – Top 10:
- Germany
- Brazil
- Portugal
- Argentina
- Belgium
- Spain
- Poland
- Switzerland
- France
- Chile
-SENIOR SPORTS REPORTER/FIFA.COM
