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Cape Town - Zimbabwe captain Willard Katsande believes the Warriors have what it takes to qualify for the 2017 African Cup of Nations after beating Malawi at the weekend.
Read: We all want to win - Motaung
Goals from Cuthbert Malajila and Khama Billiat gave Zimbabwe the edge in a close encounter that ended 2-1 at Kamuzu Stadium on Saturday.
At 29 years old, Katsande has never played a game at an AFCON finals, but the Kaizer Chiefs star is convinced the next edition in Gabon could be the one.
"Look, I have to be realistic. I am 29 and by the time the next AFCON comes I will be 33 and chances are that I will not be an automatic choice when it comes to the national team," he told The Herald.
"So this is my chance to realise a long-cherished dream of playing at AFCON."
The midfielder was encouraged with how well the side played, considering they only had two days to prepare for the game, which he says bodes well for the rest of their qualification campaign.
"The victory over Malawi under such trying circumstances shows that this team has the capacity to go all the way," he added.
"If we can pull of such a result when we only trained together for two days before spending 12 hours on the road and arriving just over 14 hours before the game, what can we achieve if we do everything according to the book?
"As players, we love our country and the fact that we made the trip to Malawi by road and did the business is ample evidence of that patriotism.
"What we need now is to get everyone behind us, as well as an improved relationship between us the players and ZIFA.
"We have to sit down and close ranks before the next qualifier because a house divided will fall."
