{"id":111231,"date":"2025-09-20T21:17:00","date_gmt":"2025-09-20T19:17:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/all-news\/moyo-eyes-caf-champions-league-group-stages"},"modified":"2025-09-20T21:17:00","modified_gmt":"2025-09-20T19:17:00","slug":"moyo-eyes-caf-champions-league-group-stages","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/all-news\/moyo-eyes-caf-champions-league-group-stages","title":{"rendered":"Moyo eyes CAF Champions League group stages"},"content":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Zimbabwe. <\/strong><\/span>FAR from the familiar roar of their home supporters in Shamva, Simba Bhora captain Blessing Moyo has sounded the war cry.<\/p>\n

They are ready to make a mark in Africa.<\/p>\n

With their sights set on the lucrative group stage, the defending league champions has a burning desire to make an early impression in the CAF Champions League, starting with their debut match tomorrow against Eswatini\u2019s Nsingizini Hotspurs in the preliminary stage.<\/p>\n

This historic campaign finds the team on foreign soil, a cruel irony born from Zimbabwe\u2019s lack of a CAF-certified stadium.<\/p>\n

Yet, this geographical hurdle has done nothing to dent the squad\u2019s ambition.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat I can say is that our preparations are going on well,\u201d Moyo, a veteran presence in the squad, declared.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are well-motivated, knowing that we are a small club, but representing our country.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe just have to do what we have to do to proceed to the next stage.\u201d<\/p>\n

Simba Bhora\u2019s debut is a tale of two newcomers.<\/p>\n

Nsingizini Hotspurs are also greenhorns in the continent\u2019s premier club competition, with their only prior CAF experience being a bruising 8-0 aggregate defeat to South Africa\u2019s Stellenbosch last season in the Confederations Cup.<\/p>\n

While Simba Bhora are tipped to go through, coach Joel Luphahla isn\u2019t taking anything for granted.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not going to be an easy game, but I am very confident in what these boys can do,\u201d Luphahla said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe want to make sure that a mark is left and we want to make sure that everybody after this, they know that there is Simba Bhora in Zimbabwe.\u201d<\/p>\n

The winner of this two-legged tie will face a much stiffer test against Tanzanian giants Simba SC, with the ultimate prize of a spot in the group stage hanging in the balance.<\/p>\n

The team arrived in Francistown on Wednesday night and has quickly settled in.<\/p>\n

Luphahla credited the club\u2019s management led by president Simba \u201cBuju\u201d Ndoro for ensuring the players\u2019 comfort, a crucial factor in their preparation.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are staying at a nice place … It\u2019s very important that the players are very comfortable, the surroundings should be very comfortable.\u201d<\/p>\n

With a full-strength squad to choose from and a pitch he described as \u201cbeautiful\u201d, Luphahla is confident his team\u2019s signature passing game will flourish.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe boys look healthy, and they look motivated,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

He called for unity, urging the country to rally behind the team<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m sure a lot of people will be rooting for us and this is the time that we put aside all the differences and come together for one cause. We are going to make sure that we do not disappoint.\u201d<\/p>\n

The journey has begun, and Simba Bhora is carrying the hopes of a nation on its shoulders.<\/p>\n

For More News And Analysis About Zimbabwe<\/a> Follow Africa-Press<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Zimbabwe. FAR from the familiar roar of their home supporters in Shamva, Simba Bhora captain Blessing Moyo has sounded the war cry. They are ready to make a mark in Africa. With their sights set on the lucrative group stage, the defending league champions has a burning desire to make an early impression […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":111230,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,16],"tags":[1493,2189,19],"class_list":["post-111231","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-sport","tag-africa-press","tag-africa-press-zimbabwe-2","tag-zimbabwe"],"yoast_head":"\nMoyo eyes CAF Champions League group stages - zimbabwe<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/all-news\/moyo-eyes-caf-champions-league-group-stages\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Moyo eyes CAF Champions League group stages\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Africa-Press – Zimbabwe. 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