THE Warriors, still trying to come to terms with their failure to qualify for the last eight of the Chan tournament from their group, are confident they will make up for that painful early exit with a victory against the Cranes of Uganda on Wednesday in their final match of the campaign.
Kalisto Pasuwa's men lost their first two Group D matches by identical 1-0 score-line against Zambia and Mali a result that saw them crashing out of the tournament.
While the Cranes still have hopes of going through to the next round with a victory, Zimbabwe will be looking to restore some battered pride.
The Warriors were the masters of their own downfall as they wasted plenty of opportunities which could have seen them win both matches.
They could now leave the tournament without scoring a goal if they fail to do so against Uganda.
But Highlanders striker Knox Mutizwa believes they can make up for that failure by winning against Uganda to restore pride.
He said they will be taking the match seriously despite that they are already out of the tournament.
"We are still going to take the match seriously despite the fact that we are out of the tournament,” he said.
“Pride is what is at stake here. We will try to get the goals. We will try to play and win the match. As strikers, we have not performed well.
“We have missed so many chances we are all disappointed but that's football.
“We know Uganda still need three points to enhance their chances of qualification but it will not be easy because we are looking at ourselves and saying we could have done better and we should make up for that disappointment.”
Pasuwa is also likely to give a run to players that he has not used in the tournament so far.
Among them, Caps United midfielder Joel Ngodzo is likely to be summoned, as is Harare City’s new signing, Raphael Manuvire.
A win against Uganda would go a long way in giving them a bit of relief, but another loss is likely to crank up the pressure for the technical team.
Zambia lead Group D and have qualified with six points, following 1-0 wins against Zimbabwe and Uganda, while Mali have four with Uganda are on one going into the last round of group matches, which will be played simultaneously.
- New Zimbabwe