Norman Mapeza stands firm as Scottland FC huff and puff in title defense

Despite huffing and puffing in the initial stages of his tenure at Scotland FC, Norman Mapeza has refused to bury his head in shame, adamant that his men are making perfect strides.

Scottland FC have been different under Mapeza in the 13 matches played so far. Sitting in fourth position with 22 points, Scotland FC have drawn more than they have won.

They have won five times, drawn seven matches, and lost once. And their sojourn so far has divided opinion amongst the Mabvira-vira faithfuls, whether the team will click the right chords as the season reaches its boiling point.

Mapeza’s arrival has also spelt doom for players like Godknows Murwira and Isaskar Gurirab, who have been sidelined.

Striker Tymon Machope has been a pale shadow of himself. Even the promising Mafious Chihweta is yet to reach full potential, while Knowledge Musona has turned into an ordinary player this season.

However, the former FC Platinum coach has remained adamant that his team is making significant ‘progress’ against the high level of expectation.

“We have been watching us week in, week out. For me, I think there is massive progress despite us not maybe winning some other games,” Mapeza said.

“Because if you keep on having so many draws, you end up saying maybe if you had done this, maybe it was going to end up with a positive result. But look, for me, the progress is there despite us not getting those desired results we are looking for, but there is progress.”

DOES SCOTTLAND FC HAVE ENOUGH FIREPOWER FOR THE AFRICAN SAFARI?

Asked if the 2025 Champions have enough firepower for the 2026/27 CAF Champions League, Mapeza said he is looking forward to beefing up his squad in the mid-season transfer window.

“Look, this is something we have spoken about with the top hierarchy, and there are some other areas maybe we need to beef up. So that’s what we do definitely. We’re going to beef up some other areas, but look, I don’t want to take anything away from these boys.

“I think the performance was there. The only difference was us not converting those chances to goals. But there are some other areas where I think maybe we need to go and work on and rectify.

“And especially there were some moments which I think we caught off guard in terms of our defending. But going forward, we had opportunities. 1v1s. Last week, it was the same. I think for the past 12 games,” Mapeza said.

RELATED STORY: Goal scoring is a national problem, says Norman Mapeza