Bafana, Angola to renew their rivalry

Cape Town - South Africa will look to return to winning form when they host Angola in an international friendly at Cape Town Stadium on Tuesday, June 16.

Kick-off at 15:00.

Bafana Bafana were held to a disappointing goalless draw by Gambia in their opening 2017 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifier on Saturday.

Shakes Mashaba’s side played some good football in the match, but a determined Scorpions outfit was able to hold them at bay in Durban and ensure the match ended in a stalemate.

“The boys gave their best, it was just unfortunate they could not score. We started like a house on fire but we were coming straight at them, thus playing into their hands and they dealt with us. But in the second half we used a lot of width and they couldn’t cope but the goals still did not come,” said Mashaba.

“Again we created a lot of chances but can’t score - in fact I counted about 12 chances in the first half alone - it is something we really have to work on because it is a South African problem. We play good football but without goals it doesn’t matter, we have to seriously do something about this but we can’t solve it at national team level, we have to get it sorted at grassroots level.”

Angola had no such trouble in their opening AFCON qualifier, crushing Central African Republic 4-0 in Lubango on Saturday. Gelson netted two goals, while Dolly Menga and veteran midfielder Gilberto also put their names on the score sheet.

The Palancas Negras showed no lack of pace and panache in their play – they will be a difficult opponent for a South African team which has struggled to hit their stride in 2015, falling out of the AFCON finals in the group stage, failing to impress in the recent Cosafa Cup and now getting their 2017 qualifiers off to a slow start.

The good news for Bafana Bafana is that they have a good record against Angola down the years: in seven matches between the teams, SA has four wins while the other three results have been draws.

The most recent clash between the sides was in the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations – Bafana won a group stage match in Durban 2-0 thanks to goals from Siyabonga Sangweni and Lehlohonolo Majoro.