Head coach of the Burger King-sponsored South African u20 Men’s National Team, Thabo Senong, has named his starting eleven to take on Cameroon in their opening match of the 2017 CAF U20 Africa Cup of Nations tournament.
Head coach of the Burger King-sponsored South African u20 Men’s National Team, Thabo Senong, has named his starting eleven to take on Cameroon in their opening match of the 2017 CAF U20 Africa Cup of Nations tournament.
This Group B clash takes place tonight (Monday, 27 February 2017) at the Levy Mwanawasa Stadium in Ndola, Zambia.
Kickoff is at 18h00.
Mondli Mpoto will take his place in goals, while the rearguard duties have been dispensed to Notha Ngcobo and Thendo Mukumela as fullbacks, supported by the central defence pairing of Katlego Mohamme and Sandile Mthethwa.
Amajita will look to Wiseman Meyiwa and Teboho Mokoena to anchor the heart of the midfield. Mokoena will captain the team in the absence of Tercious Malepe who is serving a one-match suspension. Malepe was yellow carded twice in the qualifiers last year.
Sibongakonke Mbatha, Grant Margeman and Luther Singh will be the creators in attack, and the trio will supply striker Itumeleng Shopang to bang in the goals.
Blockquote>”Modern football is all about attacking and this is one of our strengths, we aim at creating and converting as many goals as possible this evening, but we have also told the players to respect the critical phases of the match,” said Senong.
“We know that the Cameroonians will use their height and presence to try and unsettle us, but we will stick to our game plan. We need to get a positive result today to ensure we don’t go into our last group stages match with any pressure, so a good start is very vital to keep alive our chances of making it into the all-important top four so we can book our place to the World Cup later this year.”
South African starting XI:
Mondli Mpoto (GK); Notha Ngcobo; Thendo Mukumela; Katlego Mohamme; Sandile Mthethwa; Wiseman Meyiwa; Teboho Mokoena (C); Sibongakonke Mbatha; Grant Margeman; Luther Singh; Itumeleng Shopang
Substitutions:
Sanele Tshabalala; Khulekani Khubeka; Siyabonga Ngezana; Aghmat Ceres; Sipho Mbule; Kobamelo Kodisang; Liam Jordan; Khanyisa Mayo