South African players have stressed that they are up to the task of facing the star-studded Super Eagles of Nigeria in the semi-final stage of the 2023 AFCON.
From the group stage, especially after losing 2-0 in their opening group stage game against Mali, the South African side wasn’t taken as a team that will reach the 2023 AFCON last four.
The fact that they knocked out 2022 FIFA World Cup semi-finalists, Morocco in the round of 16 made the Bafana Bafana a team to watch out for.
However, their abysmal performance against Cape Verde in the quarter-final stage which ended 0-0 in 120 minutes of football and ended in the favour of Bafana Bafana after a penalty shootout, placed a bit of doubt on South Africa’s AFCON title credentials.
Unfortunately, they will go against the Super Eagles of Nigeria who are yet to taste defeat in the tournament after four wins and one draw and have also conceded just a goal in five games.
Ahead of the Semi-final clash between Nigeria and South Africa, Bafana Bafana star, Terrence Mashego admitted that the game would be tough for his team.
“It’s going to be a difficult game. You know, Nigeria, they have a good squad, but also on our side, we have a good squad, so it’s going to be a very good game,” Mashego told reporters in the mixed zone.
He continued: “We also have a good defense; now we’ve gone three games without conceding, so we have a very good defense; we are ready for any battle.
“We don’t want to pressurize ourselves; we just have to take one game at a time, and maybe we might find ourselves in the final.”
South Africa central defender, Grant Kekana added, “Obviously it’s another tough opponent. We know Nigeria has a lot of quality players, we know they’ve done well to also get this far but we believe in ourselves.
“We are going to go to the drawing board, plan accordingly, and give ourselves a chance of getting a positive result against them.”
The Super Eagles of Nigeria vs Bafana Bafana of South 2023 AFCON semi-final clash will kick off at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, February 7.
