23 March 2019 –Under-23 coach David Notoane has praised his super-charged team for the tactical discipline they showed in their 3-1 demolition of Angola, away in Luanda on Friday afternoon.
On a humid day, the SA u23 dismantled a fighting Angola in the first leg of this second round of the CAF Olympic qualifier to put themselves in the driving seat for the second leg scheduled for Milpark Stadium next Tuesday, 26 March 2019. The match kicks off at 19h00.
Despite leading 3-1 from the first leg, Notoane said there was still work to be done in the second leg.
“First and foremost, one should congratulate the boys for the good reaction and executing the game plan we put in place because Angola are not an easy team,” he said.
“The entire team played very and I want to compliment the technical team and the support staff, I think the whole plan worked well considering this was a tricky away match.”
The wily mentor said key to this victory was the fact that this team has too much firepower and relishes an attacking game.
“I think the 3-1 scoreline is a clear reflection of the type of preparations we put and our attacking prowess of Luther Singh, Phakamani Mahlambi and Lyle Foster, (though the last two didn’t get onto the scoresheet) but their work rate was outstanding and fantastic. I was really happy with their overall performance and the current picture we have at the moment,” said Notoane.
The coach said when the team went 3-0 up, he would have wanted his players to keep the ball more and used the ball better.
“When you lead 3-0 in this kind level of football, you need to keep more possession and steal your moments to go and score, which I think we did but didn’t take our chances. That is the area we would have to look into on how do we manage the game in such situations when one has a 3-goal cushion.”
The second leg is a tricky affair considering the team has a healthy lead from the first leg but that solitary goal Angola scored might give them psychological hope and believe that they can still spring a surprise, according to Notoane.
“So it is not done deal as it may appear but I think from a tactical approach we will come up with the right solution to psychologically make sure we kill the tie off. What is important, as was today, is to score first because if we do that, they (Angola) will have a mountain to climb.
“Like when we scored the first goal in this first leg, they were shell-shocked and didn’t know how to react. So, yes we are looking forward to killing the game off.
“Question is, do you freshen the team, we are a new bunch of players, new group of players; do you bring in new players to see what they can offer; so yes, it is tricky in that sense but we will do whatever is necessary to make sure we kill this tie off as a contest,” concluded Notoane.