02 May 2023 – The South African under-17 men’s national team will be eager to put their defeat to Morocco in their opening match of AFCON U17 2023 behind them and switch focus to COSAFA rivals Zambia in the second game of the tournament at the Stade Mohamed – Hamlaoui on Wednesday.(Kickoff 21:00).
While Amajimbos were beaten 0-2 by Morocco on Sunday evening (30 April 2023), Zambia also suffered defeat to Nigeriain their opening match and will come into this meeting equally desperate for all the points.
The two sides last met in the COSAFA U17 men’s tournament (in December 2022) where the Zambians claimed victories in the group stages (1-0) and in the final (1-0). Coach Duncan Crowie’s side will go into the match seeking revenge but more importantly, they need the three points that will be at stake if they are to go further in the competition.
Crowie said his players are well aware of the mistakes they made against Morocco and what they need to do to fix them against the Zambians.
“I think it will be a very open game tomorrow because bothteams need to win if they want to progress in this tournament. Both team will be looking to go forward and creating opportunities in hope that they score goals,” Crowie said.
“In Zambia I see a different opponent from Morocco. The Moroccans were very structured, sat at the back and waited for a counter-attack. Zambia is different in that they want to go forward and they score goals.”
Defender Waylon Renecke presented the players’ perspective and said their mindset has shifted from Morocco after several talks with the technical team.
“It will be a competitive game with both teams hoping to get three points. The two teams met in the COSAFA Cup with South Africa losing both games against Zambia and we are hoping to get revenge. We are ready and confident for the game tomorrow.”
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