Zimbabwe Player Ratings Vs Namibia

It wasn’t pretty – but Michael Nees managed to bag his first win as Warriors coach with a 0-1 win in group J TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations, Morocco 2025 qualifier over Namibia on Thursday afternoon at Orlando stadium in South Africa

Khama Billiat delivered the victory with a goal in the first half, helping the Warriors to a much-needed but hard-fought victory.

The win temporarily put the Warriors on top of Group J with five points from three matches, while the Brave Warriors remain bottom of the table without a point after three games.

However, the star of the show was goalkeeper Washington Arubi, who put up a solid performance in goals to keep a clean sheet- his third in a row for the Warriors.

Zemura who led Udinese to a 1-0 win over Lecce on the past weekend by scoring the only goal of the match with a superb freekick, picked up where he left off as he put up a spirited performance for Zimbabwe. He was found all over the pitch and won the penalty for Zimbabwe which Khama Billiat converted to put the team ahead.

Without further ado, let’s dig into what each player offered in a sturdy, solid win.

GOALKEEPER

Washington Arubi-  8/10

Spread himself expertly to deny the Namibians a goal and kept his third clean sheet in a row for the Warriors. Made five crucial saves of which four were fired from inside the box. A commanding display for the experienced goalie.

DEFENCE

Godknows Murwira- 6/10

Murwira was certainly not at his very best, his distribution of the ball failed him the most with almost half of his passes going astray, but made some crucial defensive actions on the right side of the pitch winning three duels from the five that he was involved in, chipped in with two clearances and intercepted the ball twice. Average performance than what he usually offers on a good day.

Jordan Zemura- 7/10

Good both in attack and defense. His overlapping runs helped set up the goal as he was fouled in the box for the penalty that Billiat converted to give Zimbabwe the lead and he nearly scored himself after a storming run forward. Kept things tight on his side, defending with authority.

Brendan Galloway – 6/10

Galloway was crucial in moving the ball forward with 80 percent of his passes successfully reaching the target. Though not as heavily involved in the defense as he should have, the Plymouth Argyle man made his presence felt on his return to the Warriors XI after missing the previous game through injury.

Gerald Takwara  – 7/10

Did not falter from his usual commanding presence. Was a defensive rock for Michael Nees’ side and dealt with the Namibians’ threat well, raking in an incredible seven clearances, and two tackles as he stood his authority at the back.

MIDFIELD

Marvelous Nakamba- 6/10

Played 79 minutes and was replaced by Richard Hachiro, a decent game from the captain who was making his return after a lengthy injury layoff. Nakamba partnered Rinomhota to neutralize Namibia’s four-men midfield combination and distributed the ball well from the midfield with a 90 percent pass accuracy rate. Good game overall.

Andy Rinomhota – 6/10

Patrolled the midfield as usual, cutting out a few key passes from the Namibians, and won five of the nine duels that he was involved in. He contributed a lot going forward but was found lacking in his defensive duties at times.

Nyasha Munetsi  – 7/10

Won’t grab anywhere near as many headlines as his goalie Washington Arubi, but is another who looks to have had an excellent game and gave his defenders good protection and was also in handy going forward providing three key passes that could have ended in goals. The tireless Reims midfielder was in the thick of things for the entire game getting involved in 25 duels winning 13 and having three tackles defensively.

ATTACK

Khama Billiat – 7/10

Arguably Zimbabwe’s most potent player in the attack. Scored his first goal for Zimbabwe after coming out of retirement as he led Zimbabwe to a 0-1 win over stubborn Namibians. Billiat converted from a penalty spot after Zemura was fouled and also created three scoring chances which came to nothing because of poor striking force.  

Terrence Dzvukamanja  – 6/10

Missed a glorious chance to send Warriors ahead in the opening minutes after cleverly beating his markers but his shot was excellently saved by the Namibian goalie. Substituted in the 69th minute for Douglas Mapfumo. Although he did well in some instances, Dzvukamanja may need to shine a little more if he is to hold on to a starting role in the Warriors squad.

Daniel Msendami  – 5/10

Should have scored in the first half, but his effort hit the woodwork and had two shots off target. Struggled to make his mark in the early stages of the second period, and it was not a surprise when he was substituted for Prince Dube.

SUBSTITUTES

Prince Dube – 5/10

Was introduced for Msendami early in the second period, but the Young Africans attacker struggled to make his mark. Two of his attempted shots on goal bore no fruit with one shot going wide and the other one saved by the goalie.

Douglas Mapfumo – 6/10

Substituted on for Terrence Dzvukamanja Mapfumo did not get much change out of the Namibians’ defense upon entering the field Also saw his shot saved by the goalie and the other one going wide.

Divine Lunga – 6/10

Played 11 minutes after coming in for Khama Billiat, Lunga made three clearances as he helped to deny firing Namibians an equalizer in the dying minutes of the game.

Richard Hachiro – 6/10

Was introduced for Marvelous Nakamba in the 79th minute, and never put a foot wrong in the short period he was on the pitch. Perhaps with more minutes, Hachiro can prove his worth in the team.

Teenage Hadebe – 6/10

Was given the nod in the 90+ minutes for Zemura, perhaps as a tactical change to cool off the Namibian’s attack, but Hadebe did not have any effect on the game.