ZIMBABWE international defender Munashe Garananga is set to play one of the biggest matches in his career when his Danish side Copenhagen host English giants Chelsea in a Uefa Conference League round of 16 first leg tie tonight.
FC Copenhagen were drawn to play Chelsea, who were the competition’s top-seeded team after they overturned a one-goal deficit to beat German side Heidenheim 4-3 after extra time away from home in the playoffs.
The Warriors defender, who featured for 83 minutes before he was substituted in the match against Heidenheim after suffering an injury scare, is part of the 21-member squad to face Chelsea which was announced by the technical team yesterday.
“Twenty-one players have been selected for the squad for Thursday’s Conference League 1/8 final against Chelsea FC,” the club announced on their website before listing the names of the players, which included Garananga.
“Mohamed Elyounoussi is dosed and is ready for Sunday’s game against Sønderjyske. Roony Bardghji is now training fully with the team and is still expected to be ready for the Championship game.
“Jordan Larsson and Lukas Lerager are expected to be available for selection before the national team break.”
The club added: “The time line for Andreas Cornelius’ injury has changed over the past week and he is therefore not ready to participate in full training with the rest of the team.
“He is expected to participate in full training during the upcoming national team break.”
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The Copenhagen injury list also includes Nicolai Boilesen, Oscar Buur, Oliver Højer and Jordan Larsson.
Garananga has struggled to pin down a starting place in the FC Copenhagen team this season with just eight league appearances and one in the Conference League.
If he gets the chance to start today’s match, he may have to test himself against Chelsea’s top attackers such as Cole Palmer, Christopher Nkunku, who is the tournament’s top scorer, Pedro Neto and Jadon Sancho.
Moses Jackson and Noni Madueke are currently injured and should miss the two Conference League rounds of 16 matches.
The second leg of the tie is set to take place next Thursday at Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea have been scoring for fun in the competition, netting 26 goals in six matches at an average of over 4 goals per game during the group phase.
The first leg will see Chelsea travel to the Danish capital at Copenhagen’s Parken Stadium tonight, with the reverse fixture set for Stamford Bridge March 13.
Baring any unforeseen circumstances, Garananga is expected to join the Zimbabwe national team for the 2026 World Cup qualifiers against Benin and Africa Cup of Nations finalists Nigeria next week.
The winner of the Copenhagen-Chelsea tie will face the winner between Legia Warsaw and Molde in the quarter-finals.
