Bafana EYE revenge against Mali

It has been just over a decade since Mali gave Bafana Bafana a 2-0 thumping in the Afcon tournament and now the South African national side is looking to settle the scores

South Africa’s much-awaited crunch match against Mali is upon us and it is up to the current crop of Bafana Bafana players to adequately avenge the humiliation that the national team suffered at the hands of a hosting Mali at the 2002 African cup of Nations tournament.

Mali defeated Bafana Bafana 2-0 in the quarterfinals of the Afcon tournament in 2002 and the South African national football side has since had to wait for over a decade to get even with the West Africans.

Bafana Bafana will now lock horns with Mali in the quarterfinals of the 2013 Afcon competition tomorrow, February 2, at a sold out Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban at 20:30.

After a dramatic 2-2 draw with Morocco on last Sunday, South Africa finished at the top of group A to qualify for the knockout stages. This result effectively saw Morocco get eliminated, as Cape Verde beat Angola 2-1 in a concurrent fixture, to finish second in the group.

Mali on the other hand narrowly made it out of group B after registering a 1-1 draw against the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) to finish second in the group.

Bafana Bafana coach, Gordon Igesund is very upbeat about the fixture against Mali and believes his team is closer to reaching the final of the tournament.

“We are two games away from the final, the players understand where we are and we all know there is a huge challenge that lies ahead of us. We know what we have to do. When you get this far in any competition, you are self-motivated but at the same time it gets tougher. Mali is a very talented team with very hard working players.”

Igesund said he was aware of the Malians’ tactics but believes the match will still be a very tough encounter.

“They play differently to most teams we have faced; they like to slow things down. They knock the ball around and are very comfortable on the ball, but then again there are no easy games in the quarterfinals.”

Despite the team being in high spirits and on a serious revenge trail, Bafana Bafana captain, Bongani Khumalo has warned his charges against being too complacent just because they have made it out of the group stages.

“Being in the quarter-finals is never easy and it gets more difficult because everyone wants to be in the last four. Regardless of who we would have come up against, our main objective is to proceed to the next round. Mali is a very useful side but we are now motivated and we will give it our all.”

Khumalo’s second in command, Itumeleng Khune, concurred with the captain’s sentiments regarding the upcoming fixture and also warned that Mali is not going to be an easy side to beat.

“I think it’s going to be a great game because Mali is a very good side. For us we now have to take one game at a time. We know it’s not going to be easy and we cannot afford to take Mali lightly. They did well to get this far and they are a dangerous side, so we have to work harder to win the game and proceed to the next stage.”

Khumalo also lauded the support the team has been receiving from football lovers across the country and said it is great that the team will be playing in front of a full capacity crowd.

“We are very grateful for their (South Africans) support and hopefully they will give us the boost we need on Saturday. And playing in front a big crowd like the one we saw against Morocco is as a positive sign that we are doing something right, because in any case pressure is there in every game we play.

“This is a very special game which is now a sell-out just like the past match and our supporters will work as the 12th player as usual,” added Khumalo.

The team welcomes back striker, Lehlohonolo Majoro from injury, which he sustained in the match against Angola in the group stages. Majoro scored Bafana Bafana’s second goal of the tournament in the latter match, and will be looking to increase his tally against the Malians tomorrow.

On-form defender Siyabonga Sangweni, on the other hand, has already scored two tournament goals for the national side and is surprisingly among the contenders for the Afcon top goal scorer accolade should he continue with his spectacular displays.

Bafana defender, Anele Ngcongca, will miss the quarterfinal fixture against Mali tomorrow after he was suspended for accumulating two yellow cards in the group stages. He will thus be replaced by the experienced Siboniso Gaxa who has declared his readiness for the Mali encounter.

“We have to be positive all the time. No one is guaranteed a place in the team, everyone deserves to play but only 11 can start at any given time. It would be nice for me to represent my country on home soil. I am really looking forward to that if I do start,” said Gaxa.

“I have played more than 50 times for the national team and this would be one of the biggest games for me and for the country.”

In the other quarterfinal match which will be played earlier on Saturday, group B leaders Ghana will play against Cape Verde Islands who finished second in group A, behind Bafana Bafana. The match will kick off at 17:00 at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium.

On Sunday, group D top finishers, Cote D’Ivoire, will take on group C runner-ups, Nigeria at the Royal Bafokeng Stadium in Phokeng; while group C leaders, Burkina Faso will take on Togo at Mbombela Stadium to wrap up the quarterfinals stage. The two fixtures will commence at 17:00 and 20:30 respectively.