Johannesburg - South Africa’s national Under-20 soccer team will play four friendly games against top opposition when they tour West Africa later this month.
South African Football Association (SAFA) spokesperson Dominic Chimhavi confirmed to Sport24 in an exclusive interview on Tuesday that the tour will serve as a preparation for Amajita ahead of their crucial clash against Cameroon in the 2015 African Youth Championship qualifiers.
Amajita will lock horns against Senegal, Mali, Burkina Faso and then wrap-up their tour with a clash against Ivory Coast in Abidjan on July 30.
“We have an important West African tour coming up in two weeks’ time.” Confirmed Chimhavi.
“We have important preparations for the African Youth Championships qualifying match against Cameroon next month. So we will be playing four friendly games before meeting Cameroon in August.
“We will depart for West Africa on the 20th of this month. We will start playing on the 23rd against Senegal in Dakar. Then we will also visit Mali, Burkina Faso and then round-off our trip against Ivory Coast in Abidjan.
“SAFA organised this trip just to prepare Shakes Mashaba and his team for a two-legged clash against Cameroon because if we beat them, we will qualify for next year's tournament,” concluded Chimhavi.
Shakes Mashaba's troops will head into the game against the young Indomitable Lions on the back of a 3-0 aggregate win over Ethiopia in the previous round of qualifiers.
They were 2-0 victors away in Addis Ababa early in May before putting a final nail the Ethiopians’ coffin with a 1-0 victory in Dobsonville two weeks later.
The first leg against Cameroon will be played on the weekend of August 15-17, with the second leg scheduled for the weekend of August 29-31.
The winner will claim a golden ticket to the eight-day tournament, which will be held from March 8-15 next year.
South African Football Association (SAFA) spokesperson Dominic Chimhavi confirmed to Sport24 in an exclusive interview on Tuesday that the tour will serve as a preparation for Amajita ahead of their crucial clash against Cameroon in the 2015 African Youth Championship qualifiers.
Amajita will lock horns against Senegal, Mali, Burkina Faso and then wrap-up their tour with a clash against Ivory Coast in Abidjan on July 30.
“We have an important West African tour coming up in two weeks’ time.” Confirmed Chimhavi.
“We have important preparations for the African Youth Championships qualifying match against Cameroon next month. So we will be playing four friendly games before meeting Cameroon in August.
“We will depart for West Africa on the 20th of this month. We will start playing on the 23rd against Senegal in Dakar. Then we will also visit Mali, Burkina Faso and then round-off our trip against Ivory Coast in Abidjan.
“SAFA organised this trip just to prepare Shakes Mashaba and his team for a two-legged clash against Cameroon because if we beat them, we will qualify for next year's tournament,” concluded Chimhavi.
Shakes Mashaba's troops will head into the game against the young Indomitable Lions on the back of a 3-0 aggregate win over Ethiopia in the previous round of qualifiers.
They were 2-0 victors away in Addis Ababa early in May before putting a final nail the Ethiopians’ coffin with a 1-0 victory in Dobsonville two weeks later.
The first leg against Cameroon will be played on the weekend of August 15-17, with the second leg scheduled for the weekend of August 29-31.
The winner will claim a golden ticket to the eight-day tournament, which will be held from March 8-15 next year.