NewsDay (Zimbabwe)

Mpofu hopeful despite humiliatin­g result

- BY FORTUNE MBELE ● Follow Fortune on Twitter @FortuneMbe­le

HIGHLANDER­S FC coach Mandla Mpofu is confident his job is still secure even after overseeing a defeat to Bulawayo City at Barbourfie­lds Stadium yesterday, their second in five matches.

Mpofu has only managed to win once in five games. Losing three matches in the process.

Daggers are already out for the gaffer who would not be helped by yesterday’s result.

Melikhaya Ncube scored for City five minutes after the break and that was all his side needed to collect all the three points.

This was after Wilfred Munorwei had done brilliant work on the left to feed Ncube, who showed good technical ability before guiding the ball past Ariel Sibanda in goal for Highlander­s.

The goal unsettled Bosso, who outset resorted to playing the long balls that failed to yield any results.

“Being a derby it was always not going to be easy. We could have buried the match in the first half. As a coach you wonder how all your players can be off form. We can not come into the match and the whole team is not functionin­g. A team that worked harder got three points,” Mpofu said.

City coach Philani “Beefy” Ncube said they capitalise­d on Bosso’s weaknesses.

“It was not an easy game we avoided conceding in the first half. We knew they had a blunt strike force, we regrouped in the second half and we minimised them in midfield where we knew they had players who can take shots. There is always a starting point, we can’t always be losing,” added Ncube.

Divine Mhindirira should have put Bosso in the lead after 20 minutes of play, but the midfielder missed the target from about six yards out.

He had been fed an inch perfect pass by Rahman Kutsanzira from the left.

City defence was marshalled by new captain Vincent Moyo, who managed to counter all Bosso raids until the end of the match.

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