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THISDAY, THE SATURDAY NEWSPAPER • MARCH 26, 2016
GLOBAL SOCCER
2017 Africa Cup of Nations Qualifier… 2017 Africa Cup of Nations Qualifier… 2017 Africa Cup of Nations Qualifier… 2017 Africa Cup of Nations
Cameroon supporters cheering their team
Cameroon Players Ready for Bafana Challenge
C
ameroon are ready to play South Africa said their new coach Hugo Broos in the build-up top the African Nations Cup qualifier between the two former winners on today. Cameroon host South Africa in Limbe in the Group M qualifier and the two sides meet each other again three days later in Durban in matches that Bafana Bafana must win to have any chances of reaching the finals in Gabon in 2017. Broos had his first training session with the players on Monday and said, “the first contract went really well, it has given me a little more clarity”. The Cameroon squad have been preparing at the CAF Technical Centre near Yaounde. “It’s been ideal for
preparation with all the conditions perfect for good work. The players in the squad look ready. I have confidence in them,” he said. “Bafana Bafana are a dangerous opponent. We have studied our opponent and seen a team who know how to play,” the Belgian born coach added. Bafana Bafana head into the match having claimed just one point from their opening two qualifiers, after being held to a goalless draw at home by Gambia before suffering an embarrassing 3-1 defeat away to Mauritania. The Indomitable Lions, in contrast, top the pool with two wins from two: 1-0 at home to Mauritania and 1-0 away to Gambia. This effectively means that South Africa’s hopes of qualifying will depend on them claiming back-to-back wins over the West Africans in the teams’ two meetings.
This match will be the first in charge for Cameroon’s new Belgian coach Hugo Broos, who was a surprise pick for the post and will be looking to make a good impression on home soil. “We will put the team on the ground, be ready, and will fight to the last minute. Then we'll see, this is football,” said Broos of the match against South Africa. “South Africa also has its weaknesses. We'll see which team will capitalise on the weaknesses of the other.” Bafana coach Shakes Mashaba has acknowledged that the Cameroon matches are vital for his team as far as reaching Gabon 2017 is concerned. "These two matches are almost a make-or-break for us. If we want to resurrect our campaign, these are the matches that we will have to do well in,” said Mashaba.
He added, “We have to put up a fight as though our lives depend on these matches. I believe we have selected a strong team that will deliver." The good news for South Africa is that they have a strong record against Cameroon, with three wins and just one loss from six official matches between the teams. However, the most recent meeting was way back in 2008 (a 3-2 win for South Africa in that year’s Nelson Mandela Challenge match) and all six encounters have been played on South African soil; Bafana Bafana have never played the Indomitable Lions in their own backyard. Ethiopian referee Bamlak Tessema Weyesa will take charge of the match in Limbe, with the return fixture set for Durban’s Moses Mabhida Stadium on Tuesday.
Lwandamina Targets Maximum Points
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eorge Lwandamina is aiming for a six-pointer in the 2017 Africa Cup Group E doubleheader qualifier against Congo-Brazzaville. The two sides’ meet in a top two clash on Wednesday with both sides tied on four points heading into match-daythree at Levy Mwanawasa Stadium in Ndola. Leaders Congo beat second placed Zambia to top spot in Group E on goal difference. Three points at home for Zambia in midweek and another three away in Brazzaville on March 27 will put Chipolopolo one foot into the finals heading into June’s penultimate round of matches. “We want the six points but I am sure even Congo want the six points but we have this opportunity to get the six points hoping and trusting we have a better game,” Lwandamina said. “We are hoping the players will give
us the desired result. “A home win is a win by any margin and it will also give us impetus to take to the next game but a win is all we need to take into the next week.” Zambia head into the first leg with just one loss against Congo from ten previous meetings and with four wins and a draw since losing 1-0 in November 1996 in a 1998 World Cup qualifying match away in Pointe Noire.
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Action during a game involving South Africa and Cote d'Ivoire