Bafana Bafana will face a stern test of their preparations for the Africa
Cup of Nations tournament when they take on hosts Cote d’Ivoire in an
international friendly on Tuesday evening. The match, set to take place at
the Stade Felix Houphouet-Boigny, will kick off at 21h00.
South Africa’s last friendly against lowly-ranked Eswatini ended in a
goalless draw, a result that did not live up to expectations as Bafana
seek to boost their confidence ahead of the tournament. Despite this, Hugo
Broos’ side remain unbeaten since June last year, their only defeat in the
Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers and in a series of friendlies coming in
the form of a 2-1 loss to Morocco.
Cote d’Ivoire, meanwhile, played a much more competitive friendly against
Morocco on Saturday, ending in a 1-1 draw. Sebastien Haller broke the
deadlock for the Elephants on the stroke of half-time, only for Ayoub El
Kaabi to equalise for the Atlas Lions nine minutes before time.
The last time the two sides met was in the 2019 AFCON tournament in the
group stages, where Ivory Coast edged Bafana 1-0 in their opening game.
However, the South African side had previously beaten Ivory Coast 2-0 in a
friendly international back in 2014.
Both teams have named their starting lineups for the match, with Ivory
Coast’s side featuring the likes of Yahia Fofana, Kessie, Wilfried Zaha
and Sebastien Haller, while Bafana Bafana’s lineup includes Williams,
Modiba, Mayambela and Mothiba.
17 October 2023
Ivory Coast vs South Africa18 October 2023
TS Galaxy vs PDF FCPDF people are crying now🤣🤣🤣
Bathi they have 8 players in the National team— Qhawe kaNcokazi (@Qhawe5654) October 13, 2023
