Messy mix of politics and football

Messy mix of politics and football

RECENT OPINION ARTICLES

• Mkapa a wrong prescription for Zimbabwe

• MDC's 'Mugabe must go' strategy ill-thought

• The many lies told in your name

• Denial: Zimbabwe's collective psychosis

• Mugabe mortages country to highest bidder

• No easy passage, but safe landing

• Mugabe can, and must face justice

• Civil society double standards inimical to change

• Disentangling Mawere and Moyo

• Masola a typical failed Christian

• Crisis of leadership in Zimbabwean churches

• Zimbabweans must take stand against tyranny

• Silence is a lie. Silence is a crime

• South Africa falling into Mugabe's Soviet trap

• Remembering Chris Giwa, 14 years on

By Kuthula Matshazi

AS A former super league soccer player I struggle comprehending the basis of Chido Makunike’s arguments (Why Africa flops at World Cup).

Are they based on sound theory or mere speculation? Not to give soccer experts an overriding importance, did he consult the experts to find out the authenticity of his claims?

I say this because I have a problem with his basic understanding of soccer and its technical requirements and the subsequent theorising in this article.

Makunike adopts a reductionist stance by making soccer seem a simple game that everyone can play at the highest professional level regardless of the various attributes critical to success in this game, such as its technical attributes. Soccer requires an elaborate infrastructure like exercise machines to build your body and stamina, well maintained grounds, field equipment like movable goal posts, cones, etc, which cannot be afforded by some of us.

Although not an elaborate structure, diet is also key to building a player’s body. A short player is disadvantageous in aerial tussles. How do you defend or attack crosses from the wings if you are short and playing against players like Peter Crouch or Shadreck Malunga? Weight is important because the bigger you are the better you will be in exerting your physical strength in the game. Physique is very much a key technical aspect of the game.

Our brilliant coach, Charles Mhlauri even mentioned this when he expressed the view that Honour Gombami’s physique works against him. While indeed Makunike is right to say these aspects do not give a player as much of “basal advantage”, they do count and coaches actually attach critical importance…and it is their desire to have tall, big and strong men. Soccer needs great motivation. How does a coach manage to spur on a team like Real Madrid, or any ordinary team without motivating them?

Makunike continues his reductionist argument when he relegates the performance of African countries at the recent World Cup to only psychological conditions and fails to recognise our shortcomings in technique. It is true that Europe offers more of an enabling environment for the African soccer player than Africa, but this is because of scarcity of resources and nothing to do with Africa’s weakness and lack of wit. Zimbabwe has failed to retain Makunike because he probably got a better deal where he is now.

If oppression traumas affect us, then how did South Africa manage to go to successive World Cup tournaments and perform relatively well? They won the Africa Nations Cup. In fact they were a force to reckon with until the administration of soccer experienced problems that saw a succession of coaches appointed and dismissed and also there we was a fall out with stars like Quinton Fortune, lost Lucas Radebe to injury, Mark Fish, to retirement, etc. South Africa failed to groom and nurture star players who were in the class of these greats that I have just mentioned. True politics and soccer do mix but Makunike mixes them in an angry and messy manner.

I believe that we as Africans have players who are short of the technical ability needed at that level of professional cutthroat competition. The level of football and techniques used by local based players and those at world cup are miles apart. If we accept Makunike’s argument of emotional scars, then why do individual African players excel in their respective clubs, which of course you highlight suffer “racism and alienation”, conditions that could exert psychological trauma? And why do some of those stars come back to put up lacklustre performances or just showing moments of brilliance when playing for their respective countries? I suggest that we could attribute it sometimes to shortcomings of their teammates who do not play at the same level of gruelling professional football and therefore lack the techniques required at that high-level. Also, the tactics used by the coaches could be the wrong ones for the games.

In the case of Wales, Norway, Sweden, Poland, etc what could be Makunike’s explanation about their failure to make it to the World Cup or their dismal showing at the tournament despite the abundant resources and no emotional scars to contend with? His explanation sounds exactly like a racist article I came across in Canada’s right wing Globe and Mail newspaper, which characterised Angola as spare parts and just happy to be at the World Cup without ambition to win. In other words, very happy just to be with the privileged white race! I think such simplistic arguments are dangerous because they appeal to many of us…after all they are simple to grasp and do not require much effort to rationalise!

It is unfortunate that Makunike attacks us for welcoming and recognising the sterling work of our foreign coaches. Everywhere in the world it is like so. Sven-Goran Eriksson experienced this euphoria which ultimately and unintended, brought his private life to public scrutiny by the British press and partly led his demise. Our behaviour is not exclusive but, world over, we create our heroes from football personalities. How we love them!!!! But Makunike has some truth when he suggests that some coaches have been failures. But that should not the basis of attacking the entire European coaches who coach in Africa. Many have done so well under trying circumstances like shortage of resources, mediocre pool of players, etc.

The challenge that faces us is to, contrary to Makunike’s suggestion, get “elaborate infrastructure”, improve our techniques and as you rightly say, work on the psyche of our players – for the game and not past oppression. But to divorce psyche and attribute it as the sole reason for our demise is very unfortunate. Makunike is amazing when he suggests that South Africa does not know whether they are Africans. I suppose it would need a column to explain.
Matshazi is a Zimbabwean journalist and writes from Canada
JOIN THE DEBATE ON THIS ARTICLE ON THE NEWZIMBABWE.COM FORUMS
debate@newzimbabwe.com