Banyana Banyana coach Desiree Ellis has pointed out an element that led to the Netherlands’ defeat at the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup on Sunday morning.
The 2022 WAFCON champions were booted out of the women’s elite football competition after losing 2-0 in the Round of 16.
Heading into the encounter, Ellis was confident that her charges could cause an upset. However, they didn’t get the desired result.
BANYANA BANYANA’S LACK OF CLINICAL FINISHING
According to Desiree Ellis, her side were not clinical in front of goal as they failed to convert the goalscoring opportunities they were creating.
“To win the game, we needed to score more goals. We had a lot of opportunities especially in the first half, to kill the game because we knew the quality side the Netherlands are,” said Ellis.
“We knew that even though we conceded from a set-piece, the chances that we created should have put us out of sight. A decision or a goal, we could’ve been speaking a different story.
“In the end, the legs were not there anymore for us to keep pushing for the duration of the game. But I said they [Banyana Banyana] are going to be in the game and they [Netherlands] know we going to be here.”
BANYANA BANYANA FIRST HALF-INJURY SETBACKS
Ellis further believes first-half injuries to the duo of Bambanani Mbane and Jermaine Seoposenwe disrupted their game plan.
“Losing Mbamba [Bambanani Mbane] and Jermaine [Seoposenwe] in the first half also didn’t help the way we set up. I think it was huge. They’re very instrumental in the way that we play. Especially Jermaine with what she brings to the team.
“But we brought the squad of 23, the others that came up [Wendy Shongwe and Tiisetso Makhubela] they did really well. Unfortunately, that is part of sport. You might pick up an injury,” she added.
Despite the loss, it’s positive progress for the South African women’s senior national team who improved from 2019 World Cup performance. In France, they exited the competition in the group stages.
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