Zimbabwe have switched the date and venue of the second leg of their World Cup first round qualifier against Somalia from Bulawayo on Sunday to Harare next Tuesday.

Zimbabwe suffered an embarrassing 1-0 loss in the first leg played in neutral Djibouti on Thursday.

The switch comes at the request of the Somalis who were unable to secure flights to Bulawayo before the scheduled return match on Sunday.

“The Zimbabwe Football Association wishes to advise all football stakeholders that following a request from the Somali Football Federation, and in consultations with FIFA, our 2022 World Cup qualifier second leg against Somalia has been rescheduled,” said a statement.

“The match will now be played on Tuesday after SFF failed to secure flights to Zimbabwe in time for the initial fixture date which was Sunday.

“The venue of the match has also been moved from Barbourfields Stadium in Bulawayo to the National Sports Stadium in Harare because we already have another international match scheduled for Barbourfields on the September 10.”

Zimbabwe’s under-23 team host South Africa there in the return leg of their Olympic Games qualifier.

“We understand the inconvenience this development presents to all stakeholders and we unreservedly apologise for the unexpected developments,’’ ZIFA added.

“In the spirit of fair play, African solidarity, brotherhood and togetherness, we felt the Somali Football Federation’s request was reasonable and sincere, thus, we had to consent, otherwise the match would not have taken place at all.

Source: African Football