“We are not going down!” Manica Diamonds board fires back at critics after Chicken Inn defeat

Manica Diamonds Executive Board member Justice Matsatsira has declared that the club will not be relegated this season, despite languishing in the relegation zone.

“With the way we took over the team now it’s fine. We are not going to relegation. Atisikuenda ku relegation, asihambi ku relegation,” Matsatsira emphasized in Shona and Ndebele.

Speaking after Manica Diamonds’ 2-1 defeat to Chicken Inn FC at Luveve Stadium yesterday, Matsatsira said the club still has a clear path to survival.

“We know we have 12 games left, but no one will win it at home. So those are our points, those are our targets,” he said.

Matsatsira also addressed reports of unpaid players and strikes at the club.

“Yes, we have plans to add new players but I won’t disclose at the moment. But as you see, the team has improved compared to last year and this first half of the season. Now challenges are no longer there. You journalists have been writing saying we can’t afford to pay players. Players have gone on strike just because you were being sent by those people who don’t want our team to grow,” Matsatsira added.

Manica Diamonds Head Coach Herbert Maruwa also expressed confidence that the team will survive.

“Manica Diamonds will survive relegation. I don’t know how, but it will survive,” Maruwa said.

The Mutare-based side will need to win 8 of the remaining 12 matches to escape relegation. They are currently on 16 points and sit in the bottom three of the Castle Lager Premier Soccer League log table.