22 January 2018 – It may seem like an impossible task to complete but South African U20 Women’s national team coach, Maud Khumalo remains optimistic about her side’s chances against their more fancied opponents, Nigeria.

Basetsana have a tough task of reversing a 2-0 defeat suffered at the hands of the West Africans a fort night ago in the first leg of the final round of FIFA U20 Women’s World Cup qualifiers in Polokwane.

Even though Basetsana have been in a very similar position in their world cup qualifying campaign against Burundi, Khumalo will need to come up with a solid game plan that will dismantle the stubborn Nigerian defence, something the coach believes is possible should her youthful side be in the right frame of mind and give everything at Nigeria.

“It obviously will be difficult playing Nigeria in their own backyard. We are already on the back foot and playing them away won’t make things any easier however, we need to remain positive. Ninety minutes is a very long time and anything is possible during that period. We will fight till the referee’s final whistle but most importantly, regardless of the result, this has been a worthwhile experience for these girls” said Khumalo.

Basetsana are currently in camp at the SAFA Technical Centre in Johannesburg and will have their final training session on Wednesday before departing for Nigeria.

The U20 Women’s World Cup takes place in August this year in France from 5 to 24 August.