Ntuthuko Maphumulo soccer
Bafana Bafana and The Democratic Republic of Congo have both already qualified for the African Cup of Nations finals in Mali next year and the match between the sides at King’s Park in Durban on Sunday afternoon is being billed as a “celebration”.
But the home team will be playing for more than just pride and keeping their unbeaten run in the qualifiers intact. They will also be trying to get their supporters behind them again.
When the team arrived in Durban they were greeted by a host of jubilant supporters at the airport and from there the team toured the city centre to the delight of their fans, who received autographed balls and caps from favourite players.
This support has been sorely missed by the team in their recent matches held at the FNB stadium in Johannesburg.
Bafana Bafana coach Carlos Queiroz was overjoyed by the reception and did not mince his words on what it meant to the team. “It was a wonderful reception for the team by the people and that has given them more responsibility to deliver the goods on Sunday for they owe the supporters,” he said.
There will be even more pressure on the Durban-born trio of Sibusiso Zuma, Siya- bonga Nomvete and Delron Buckley as it will be the first time they play in front of their home fans in Bafana Bafana colours.
Bafana Bafana’s road to the Mali finals began against the unpredictable Congo last year when they won 2-1 in Ponte Noire. That was followed by the first game against Liberia (watched by fewer than 10 000 fans at FNB), a 0-0 away draw against Mauritius and a 3-0 victory in the home leg against the islanders. Qualification was sealed with a 1-1 away draw against Liberia a few weeks ago.
Two players who did not feature in Monrovia have returned to the national squad. They are Zuma, who plays for Copenhagen and is being eyed by other European teams, and Buckley, who plays for Bochum in Germany. Both have been released by their clubs as their respective league seasons have ended.
The omission of Jacob Lekgetho, who plays for Lokomotiv Moscow in Russia, from the squad to play Congo has seen him being drafted into the World Cup qualifiers squad, expected to consist mainly of European-based players, for the game against Burkina Faso in two weeks.
Sunday’s match will be the last African Cup of Nations qualifier for Bafana Bafana and will signal the fourth time South Africa have qualified for the African Cup of Nations since their readmission to world soccer.
The two top teams in the seven qualifying groups go through to the finals. Mali, as hosts, and Cameroon, as defending champions, gained automatic qualification.
The countries that have already booked themselves places for next year’s continental showpiece are Ghana, Liberia, Ivory Coast, Egypt, Nigeria, South Africa, Algeria, Togo, Senegal, Cameroon and Mali.
There are only four more places available, and they will be decided in this final round of qualifying matches.