Zimbabwe manager Klaus-Dieter Pagels is confident his team will stand the heat when they face Egypt in the World Cup qualifiers as he named 18 players for the March 26 match. Pagels named an 18-member squad for the away clash, leaving out key players like Edward Sadomba, Willard Katsande and Ovidy Karuru as critics voiced concern with the lack of experienced players. Even so, the German manager seems upbeat ahead of the encounter saying he has faith in his youngsters who are 'to lay a foundation for the future'. “What we are trying to do is to lay a foundation for the future and you can see that this team has youngsters that we are hoping to build into a good team," Pagels said. "Yes, we left some experienced players but what we have is the future. “We struggled with our backline when we played Botswana, so this is the area that we will be looking to work on." Pagels' list included only three players from the side who held Mozambique 0-0 in Zimbabwe's last competitive game; Knowledge Musona, Khama Billiat and skipper Denver Mukamba. Formation change Meanwhile, the Warriors boss confirmed that he will likely face Egypt with a 4-4-2 formation after his side were slated for their defensive shortcomings in the recent 2-1 friendly win over Botswana. Egypt lead Group G with six points from two games as Zimbabwe lie third on a single point. The two teams clash again in Harare in June.
