By Oluwashina Okeleji

Benjani wants to play in the 2010 African Cup of Nations

Benjani, who plays for English side Portsmouth, could not help his country to qualify for the tournament in Ghana.

He admits participating in the last two editions of the tourney has helped the development of the game in his country.

He said: "It's terrible to be absent at the tournament but we had three teams in the group and it was very tough.

"We had a nice experience last year in Egypt and it exposed a lot of our old and young players to the atmosphere of such tournaments.

"It would have been nice to make another return to such a prestigious football festival to continue the development of the game in my country.

Portsmouth will lose the likes of Sulley Muntari, Papa Bouba Diop and John Utaka for the tournament in January.

As his four African team-mates prepare to travel to Ghana, Benjani is content with some nerve-wrecking banter.

"They [Kanu, Utaka, Muntari and Diop] always make fun of me but that's the price you pay for missing out on such a big tournament," Benjani told BBC Sport.

"They always warn me not allow the team to swim in relegation zone while they are away, but it's all good.

"I know the importance of such a big competition but I will focus on my club football and hope for the best next time around."

With the Cup of Nations taking place in less than six weeks, Benjani said the Warriors are determined to make amends during the 2010 World Cup qualifiers.

Zimbabwe are drawn in Group Two with Guinea, Namibia and Kenya in what should be a comfortable pairing for the Warriors, but Benjani is cautious.

"It's a tricky one, if we make it out of the first round, it will be tough in the second because the bigger teams are waiting there," Benjani said.

"There are no easy games any more in football and results in the past few years have shown that the gap has been closed between countries.

"The so-called smaller teams are now beating the big sides in Africa which is an indication that football has improved tremendously on the continent."