Benjani sends clear message . . . ‘I am building, not leaving’

Innocent Kurira [email protected]

A month ago, the future of Highlanders coach Benjani Mwaruwari seemed to hang in the balance, shrouded in speculation and uncertainty as whispers grew louder that he could be preparing to walk away from one of Zimbabwean football’s most storied institutions.

The conversation around Bosso was dominated by rumours, conjecture and endless debate over whether the former Warriors captain would remain at the helm.

Yet as the Castle Lager Premier Soccer League season begins its long slide towards the finishing line, the mood has shifted. The uncertainty that once surrounded Mwaruwari’s future has quietly given way to something more revealing. Rather than dwelling on where he might be next year, he is speaking about where Highlanders need to be.

There is a noticeable difference in his tone. It is the language of a man whose gaze has moved beyond the horizon of the current campaign and settled on the work that still lies ahead.

Mwaruwari has openly admitted that the remaining league fixtures are serving a dual purpose.

While results remain important, they are also providing a valuable window into the strengths, weaknesses and possibilities within his squad. Every minute, every partnership and every tactical adjustment is becoming part of a broader exercise aimed at shaping a stronger Highlanders side for next season.

Before thoughts can drift too far into the future, however, there is the immediate challenge of tomorrow’s demanding trip to Gibbo Stadium, where Triangle United await in a fixture layered with significance for both clubs. For the hosts, every point could prove decisive in their fight against relegation. For Highlanders, there remains pride, position and momentum to play for.

“We want to go there and win the game, but it will be tough because it’s a game which comes with a different pressure. We are facing a side that want to survive relegation while we want to finish as high as possible on the table. We want to win the game but already we are planning for next season and seeing where we can improve and what will make us a better side,” said Mwaruwari.

The remarks perhaps offer the strongest indication yet that the Highlanders coach is already thinking beyond the immediate demands of the fixture list. They reveal a manager carefully studying every detail, searching for clues about what his team lacks and what it needs in order to become more competitive when a new season dawns.

As a result, the complexion of Highlanders’ remaining matches has subtly changed. To the supporters, every fixture represents another opportunity to collect points and continue an encouraging climb up the table. To Mwaruwari, those same matches have become something more intricate and revealing.

They are auditions as much as contests, moments in which players can confirm their value, strengthen their claims for a place in future plans or expose areas that require reinforcement.

Tomorrow’s encounter presents another such examination, although it arrives with complications.

Highlanders will be without two influential figures after Kudakwashe “Nkembe” Mahachi and Mongameli Tshuma accumulated enough disciplinary points to trigger suspensions.

Both players have become important components within the Bosso setup. Mahachi’s experience and composure have often provided balance, while Tshuma has developed into a lively attacking weapon capable of unsettling opposition defences. Their absence inevitably robs Highlanders of quality, yet it also opens an unexpected door.

For a coach in evaluation mode, these moments can be invaluable.

Rather than lamenting the unavailable personnel, Mwaruwari appears content to view the suspensions through a different lens. Such situations test not only the resilience of a team but also the depth of a squad. They reveal which players are ready to embrace responsibility when opportunity arrives.

The challenge now is to find the right combination, one capable of sustaining Highlanders’ attacking threat despite the loss of two regular contributors. In doing so, captain Darlington Munkuli, Andrew Mbeba, Rainsome Pavari, Isaac Ngoma, Benjamin Oluwarotimi and Aaron “Arusha” Ngwenya may find themselves carrying an even greater share of the burden.

There is reason for optimism. Highlanders recently demonstrated their ability to navigate adversity when they claimed an impressive 2-0 victory over Herentals College at Barbourfields Stadium. On that occasion, both Munkuli and Oluwarotimi were unavailable due to suspension, yet Bosso still managed to produce a disciplined and effective performance that delivered maximum points.

That result offered a glimpse into the growing resilience within the squad and will undoubtedly provide encouragement ahead of the journey to Gibbo. Yet football seldom repeats itself in quite the same way, and the challenge awaiting Highlanders in the Lowveld possesses its own unique character.

Gibbo Stadium has long been a venue where certainty is difficult to find. The recent history between Triangle and Highlanders there tells a story of remarkable balance, neither side able to establish sustained dominance over the other.

The last 10 league meetings at the venue have yielded three victories apiece, with four matches ending level. Even the goals tell the same tale, both teams scoring exactly 10 times.

Statistics often struggle to capture emotion, but these figures paint a vivid picture of a rivalry defined by fine margins. Highlanders have scored in seven of those encounters. Triangle have done the same. Bosso have avoided defeat in seven of their last 10 visits, but so too can their opponents point to an equally respectable record.

Those numbers suggest that the league standings may mean very little once the whistle blows.

Highlanders arrive in seventh place with 41 points from 27 matches, comfortably positioned in the middle reaches of the table and still pushing to finish as strongly as possible. Triangle, by contrast, find themselves looking anxiously over their shoulders, locked in a desperate battle for survival where every match carries immense weight.

The pressures could hardly be more different.

One side is fighting to avoid the drop. The other is striving to finish with purpose and ambition. Yet woven into Highlanders’ agenda is another layer altogether, one shaped by Mwaruwari’s longer-term vision. Every decision, every selection and every performance is being assessed against a larger question: who can help form the backbone of the team he hopes to build next season?

Triangle will also have their own selection headache, with Aaron Mackie Dzanai suspended.

Nevertheless, the Sugar Sugar Boys will draw confidence from their recent 2-0 victory over TelOne, a result that injected fresh belief into their survival quest.

Highlanders, meanwhile, head into the contest buoyed by their own 2-0 triumph against Herentals.

Both teams therefore enter tomorrow’s encounter carrying momentum, although the motivations driving them are strikingly different.

For Triangle, the stakes revolve around survival and the preservation of their top-flight status.

For Highlanders, the objective is progression, another step upwards on the table and another chance to gather evidence for the future.

Should Bosso overcome the challenge, adapt to the absence of key players and continue their upward trajectory, Mwaruwari will gain more than three points. He will gather another valuable piece of information in the larger puzzle he is attempting to solve.

Only a few weeks ago, discussion surrounding the Highlanders coach centred almost entirely on whether he would stay or go. Those rumours dominated the headlines and fuelled countless conversations among supporters.

Now, however, a different narrative is beginning to emerge.

Listen carefully to the way Mwaruwari speaks and there is a quiet confidence beneath his words.

There is little trace of a man preparing an exit. Instead, there are unmistakable signs of a coach immersed in planning, analysing and building.

He is not talking like someone counting down his final days at Highlanders. He is talking like a man already sketching the blueprint for a better Bosso in 2027.

Castle Lager Premier Soccer League Week 28 Fixtures

Today

Hardrock v TelOne (Chahwanda Stadium), CAPS United v Dynamos (Rufaro Stadium), Agama v Manica Diamonds (Wadzanai Stadium), Chicken Inn v MWOS (Luveve Stadium), ZPC Kariba v Simba Bhora (Nyamhunga Stadium), Triangle v Highlanders (Gibbo Stadium), Ngezi Platinum v Hunters (Baobab Stadium).