Rest Mutore, Sports Reporter
FOR FC Platinum new signing Donald Dzvinyai, momentum is a key aspect in football and the interruption due to Covid-19 outbreak will have a a negative effect to players and clubs’ targets.
Dzvinyai believes the forthcoming Premiership will be difficult since they were forced into lockdown while in motion.
He said they had covered almost every blade of grass during preseason and was looking forward to a successful season.
“The reality is all the momentum has been killed and that is an important aspect in football;” said Dzvinyai.
The former Triangle defender, who is targeting a move outside the country, will now have to wait a little bit following the postponment of the season few days before kick off.
“When you want to achieve something as a team or as an individual, the first thing is to build momentum and make sure that you try to maintain or even improve it through the season. “And at a time we thought we had done enough and prepared to go, came the coronavirus pandemic which led to the suspension of football. We now have to wait and start afresh,” he added.
Dzvinyai is among the new signings that joined Pure Platinum Play at the beginning of the year – owing to his fine form at Triangle the previous season.
He was a key member of Taurai Mangwiro’s team that did well in it’s maiden dance in the CAF Confederation Cup, alongside Ralph Kawondera who has also been snapped by the platinum miners.
Dzvinyai said the idea was also to carry on with his form from the Lowveld side.
“With the form from the previous club, the idea was to continue working hard on the pitch and by now we would have been talking something positive.
“It is every player’s dream to break into better and top leagues, so I would say with this pandemic there is no progress made,” he said.
The defender, who has received praises for his ability to start play from the back, however said he is not losing hope.
“Yes our season has been affected but this doesn’t mean giving up. I believe in working hard and I think it’s still possible to fulfilling all my targets for the season or career rather,” he said .
Dzvinyai has been holed up in Zvishavane since the beginning of the preseason campaign after new coach Pieter de Jongh ordered players to remain in the town despite the prounouncemt of the lockdown.
And Dzvinyai believes that has also helped them to keep their fitness levels better.
They are required to send their workouts to the coaches on a daily basis.
“We have been here (Zvishavane) for a long time and we are doing workouts alone at home. The good thing is I stay with a colleague and we have been pushing each other.
“We then send them to the coach for assessment and it’s been positive so far. Our fitness levels are better, if we just work on our mentality and start believing again we will be able to hit the ground running when football starts,” said Dzvinyai.
Another area that has been affecting players, including Dzvinyai, is the uncertainty over the start of the new season.
Football authorities in the country have set between August and September as tentative dates to start the season.
“That’s another issue that is affecting us as players and we really need to work on that and have a positive mind.
“Yes there was communication that we are likely to return between August and September but there is no certainty. They are sort of provisional dates, it was going to be motivating enough if the dates have been given out with guarantee,” he said.
– HMETRO