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South African football supporters should brace themselves for upcoming marathon encounters with Angola.
By the end of November, Bafana Bafana would have played the southern African nation five times.
It must be a record for any national team to play another five times in less than six months.
But it is what it is and the two countries have to meet four more times in the space of two months.
Bafana first played Angola two months ago in an international friendly. The South Africans won 2-1 in Cape Town on June 16.
Now Angola holds the key to Bafana’s participation in next year’s CAF African Nations Championships (Chan) and again in the 2018 World Cup in Russia.
The two countries will meet in a two-legged Chan game in October. They will play for a place in next year’s finals in Rwanda, which is the national team tournament for home-based players only.
Bafana coach Shakes Mashaba will have to juggle his team around because this event does not fall within Fifa dates.
Another two-legged tie awaits the supporters of both countries in November in the 2018 World Cup qualifiers.
The two countries are expected to unleash their best players for the two games as these fall under the Fifa calender.
After beating the Palancas Negras in June, the South Africans will be hoping the trend continues into October and November.
First, the two countries will face off in the final round of the qualifying matches of the Rwanda tournament.
The first game will take place in South Africa on October 16, with the return leg a week later away from home.
The big one is scheduled for November with a tough two-legged assignment for a place in the final group phase of the bid to qualify for Russia 2018.
Bafana are unbeaten in eight previous meetings with their regional rivals. They won five and drew in the other three meetings
