Why Billiat, Munetsi were left out of Zim’s 2025 AFCON warm‑up

The absence of Khama Billiat and vice‑captain Marshall Munetsi from Zimbabwe’s squad for the upcoming friendlies against Algeria and Qatar has caused a stir, crucially as the 2025 AFCON nears.

These matches will severely test the squad’s depth, cohesion, and tactical preparedness overall. Zimbabwe are in Group B along with Bafana Bafana, Angola and Egypt.

Both players were instrumental in securing the Warriors’ qualification for the continental tournament. Moreover, Billiat helped Scottland FC clinch the Zimbabwe elite league title with two games to spare. Munetsi has been a rock for both Wolverhampton Wanderers and the national team.

Their absence from Marian Marinica’s first squad – the Romanian who was confirmed as the new head coach on Tuesday – sparked heated debate across Zimbabwe’s football circles.

WHY BILLIAT AND MUNETSI ARE ABSENT

Contrary to vast media reports, that the duo is unhappy with how the coaching appointment was handled, which has added fuel to their problems as the nation looks to fine‑tune its AFCON preparations.

ZIFA has now revealed the reasons behind their exclusion. Munetsi was omitted at the request of Wolverhampton Wanderers, as the club is going through a coaching transition. Billiat has excused himself due to ‘personal reasons’.

Consequently, they will not feature in the match against Algeria on 13 November in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia and Qatar four days later. In addition, Knowledge Musona has been dropped after suffering a hamstring injury during a league match on Saturday.

On the coaching front, PSL coach Kaitano Tembo has been retained as the Warriors’ assistant coach, while Stellenbosch FC’s Pernel Mckop returns as the goalkeepers’ coach.

Furthermore, Chikondi Mandalasi has been appointed as the new strength‑and‑conditioning coach, and Ronald Dumisani Moroka joins as an analyst. Abraham Mba​iwa serves as the fitness trainer, and James Makoni completes the staff as the second analyst.

Click here to read article