Bafana Bafana will now compete for the Plate following their elimination from the COSAFA Cup tournament after losing 5-4 on penalties to Mozambique at King Zwelithini Stadium on Wednesday evening.
The mouthwatering showdown ended 0-0 in regulation time which led to the penalty shootout.
The youthful Bafana side gave their all in both halves of the encounter but lacked the needed luck to finish off their clear-cut chances, whereas Mozambique played defensive football, lacking the needed aggression in the final third.
The Mambas got their revenge because the two sides played against each other in last year’s edition in the semis, where Bafana emerged victorious to book a place in the final and eventually clinched it.
Coach Helman Mkhalele was well aware of Mozambique’s threat before the game and he said: “The first game against Mozambique is going to be crucial because this is a side we beat in last year’s edition en route to the final. They will go into this tie with the intention of avenging that defeat and we cannot let them.”
Mkhalele had assembled an Under-21 squad in order to continue with their preparations for the upcoming 2024 Olympic qualifiers.
“We are excited, especially myself, to work with this young group of players because when we sat down with Hugo Broos, we said we need to come up with a plan not only for us Bafana Bafana but also helping the under-23 because they don’t have time to get together to prepare for the qualifiers for the Olympics in September,” said the 52-year-old mentor prior to yesterday’s game.
“So let us start now preparing our under-23. We also want to increase the big pool of players that can qualify to participate in the Nations Cup qualifiers against Liberia in September. So, it is an exciting project for me because we are not focusing on one sector but also on the bigger picture.”
South Africa will lock horns with Madagascar in the semi-finals for the Plate title set to take place at Sugar Ray Xulu Stadium on Friday, 15 July 2022.
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