Africa-Press – Lesotho. Lesotho will kick-off this year’s COSAFA Cup tournament when they face Eswatini on July 6 at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
The match will be the first in Group A and will be followed at the same venue by a clash between fellow group contestants, South Africa and Botswana. Likuena will then play Botswana on July 9 before finishing off their group stage campaign against hosts South Africa four days later.
Likuena go into the tournament seeking glory after reaching the semi-finals of the last three tournaments but it will be a challenging task with only the winners of the three groups guaranteed of a place in this year’s semi-finals.
Next month’s COSAFA Cup is the 20th edition of the regional showpiece and it will run from July 6 to 18 in a bio-bubble environment. The tournament is being played a year late after it was cancelled last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the group stage draw was made last week.
Group B will be contested by Malawi, Comoros, Madagascar and defending champions Zambia while Group C will comprise Zimbabwe, Namibia, Mozambique and West African giants Senegal who will be making their COSAFA Cup debut as special guests.
The three group winners and the best second-placed team will progress to the semi-finals and the championship marks the tournament debut for Lesotho coach Thabo Senong since he took charge in September 2019. Senong will be under pressure to deliver.
In April, Lesotho Football Association (LEFA) president Advocate Salemane Phafane fired a stern warning to Senong that Likuena needs to reach the semi-finals of the COSAFA Cup, at least, or the technical team will face “unpleasant consequences.
” Although there have been positives since his appointment, Likuena is yet to win a game under Senong.
Senong’s task at the tournament has not been made easier by Likuena’s tour to Mozambique two weeks ago where the team returned with more scandals than goals from their matches against Mozambique and Eswatini.
The outcome is that several key players including Thabo Matšoele, Tšoanelo Koetle, Hlompho Kalake, Litšepe Marabe and Monaheng Ramalefane were left out of Senong’s preliminary 30-man squad last week because of disciplinary reasons.
Marabe and Kalake, in particular, have been vital contributors for Likuena in the team’s recent impressive displays at the COSAFA Cup. Senong will name a final 20-man squad before the team travels to the Eastern Cape next week and Likuena started their camp at Bambatha Tšita Sports Arena this week.
There are likely to be several debutants but all will be seen when the squad has been trimmed down. Whoever Senong chooses, LEFA’s national executive committee (NEC) has said it expects to see “a new Likuena” in terms of performances. That puts pressure on Lesotho to get off to a good start against Eswatini next month.
Group A fixtures:
July 6
Eswatini vs Lesotho (14:00)
South Africa vs Botswana (17:00)
July 9
Lesotho vs Botswana (12:00)
South Africa vs Eswatini (15:00)
July 13
Botswana vs Eswatini (13:00)
South Africa vs Lesotho (15:00)
Lesotho’s opponents:
Eswatini
Eswatini performed poorly at the 2019 COSAFA Cup.
Eswatini failed to make it out of a group which also included Angola, Mauritius and Comoros as they finished with two points. However, Likuena played Eswatini two weeks ago in a friendly match in Mozambique and lost 1-0.
That game came after the Likuena camp was hit with scandals ranging from theft to bad behaviour. Senong said although Lesotho lost the game, it was a better performance compared to the game against Mozambique a few days earlier which Likuena lost 5-0.
Although Eswatini has not released their squad, it is likely to be more or less the same team that played against Lesotho. Likuena were without with the South African based pair of Motebang Sera and Tumelo Khutlang as they were still involved in league matches for their respective clubs.
But they should be available for the tournament and to hopefully help the national team win the group. Botswana
Sporting activities in Botswana have been on hold for over a year due to the pandemic but this will not be an easy game for Likuena.
Botswana were finalists at the last COSAFA Cup in 2019 before losing to eventual winners Zambia. On their way, Botswana beat South Africa on penalties in the quarterfinals and beat Lesotho 2-1 in the semi-final.
While the team the Zebras are likely to call up to this year’s tournament may be different to the one made it to the final in 2019, they cannot be underestimated.
South Africa
South Africa officially announced their COSAFA Cup on Tuesday. As expected it is a second string team and will be headed by Bafana assistant coach Helman Mkhalele.
With South Africa preparing for the 2020 Olympics later next month, the team they called up is a young one. It is a talented team with players that can hurt Likuena.
Players such as Tshegofatso Mabasa and Goodman Mosele were standouts in the last Premier Soccer League (PSL) season and the hosts are favourites to win the group and possibly the tournament.
The South Africa squad also includes goalkeeper Bruce Bvuma who put in a heroic performance for Kaizer Chiefs in the CAF Champions League last weekend against Morocco’s Wydad Athletic and he will likely be one of the key players for the hosts. The match against Bafana looks like a mountain to climb for Likuena, but it is a tie Senong will be looking forward to as he faces his home country.
Goalkeepers:
Bruce Bvuma (Kaizer Chiefs FC)
Sifiso Mlungwana (Golden Arrows FC)
Defenders:
Rushine De Reuck (Mamelodi Sundowns FC)
Denwin Farmer (Baroka FC)
Siyabonga Ngezana (Kaizer Chiefs FC)
Njabulo Ngcobo (Moroka Swallows FC)
Keenan Phillips (Supersport United FC)
Mashweu Mphahlele (Baroka FC)
Sifiso Ngobeni (Bloemfontein Celtic FC)
Bongani Sam (Orlando Pirates FC)
Midfielders:
Sphelele Mkhulise (Mamelodi Sundowns FC)
Ethan Brooks (TS Galaxy FC)
Siyethemba Sithebe (AmaZulu FC)
Kgaogelo Sekgota (Moroka Swallows FC)
Tiklas Thutlwa (Black Leopards FC)
Happy Mashiane (Kaizer Chiefs FC)
Vincent Pule (Orlando Pirates FC)
Goodman Mosele (Baroka FC)
Strikers:
Tshegofatso Mabasa (Orlando Pirates FC)
Bongokuhle Hlongwane (Maritzburg United FC)
For More News And Analysis About Lesotho Follow Africa-Press
