Record breaking football star snubs Zimbabwe for Welsh national team

By Lance Guma
02 March 2006

A 17-year-old Zimbabwean made history on Wednesday after becoming the youngest ever football player for the Welsh national team. Lewin Nyatanga, whose mum was born in Wales but Dad is a Zimbabwean, featured in the 0-0 draw with Paraguay at the Millennium stadium in Cardiff. A toe infection nearly threatened to derail his record breaking debut but he somehow managed to go through a late fitness test on Tuesday and manager John Toshack had no hesitation in selecting him. The teenager did not disappoint and duly put in ‘a man of the match’ performance.

Nyatanga’s decision however reveals the sorry state of Zimbabwean football in that he says he felt he had a better chance of success with the Welsh team than Zimbabwe. Nyatanga plays his club football with Derby County in the English First Division, now known as the Coca Cola League Championship. He also holds another record as the youngest player ever to captain the Welsh under-21 team. Zimbabwean football authorities made attempts to lure him into the national team last year but failed.

Natty Zvimba, Sports Editor for the Fusion Voice Newspaper, blames the Zimbabwe Football Association (ZIFA) for failing to track his progress much earlier as he rose through the ranks. He says the association is more famous for squabbles and corruption than actually doing any scouting for players. He believes ZIFA should have scouts looking out for potential players all over the world who qualify to play for Zimbabwe. Nyatanga started playing for Derby County when he was 8 years old and Zvimba believes ZIFA should not have waited 9 years to make a move for the youngster.

Zimbabwe certainly missed out on a new football star. On Wednesday Nyatanga played for Wales on the left side of a three man defensive formation alongside Danny Gabbidon and James Collins. Manchester United winger Ryan Giggs who once held the record for the youngest ever Welsh player praised Nyatanga’s performance saying he hardly put a foot wrong in the entire match.