Aephraim “Shakes” Mashaba stamped his authority the minute he walked into the press conference room at Ombaka National Stadium.
“I don’t want a translator. You guys don’t compromise with your language,” the veteran coach said as he took his seat upon arrival at the venue for today’s 2018 Fifa World Cup qualifier against Angola (4.30pm SA time).
The Bafana Bafana coach will be expecting his players to exert that same authority when they face Palancas Negras, who are sitting in 98th place on the Fifa rankings, in a first leg clash to be played at the 35000-seater stadium.
“We have focused on the two phases of the game in our preparation, which is defending and attacking. We need to switch from defence to attack in a split second. We will also try to match them pound for pound in midfield. And going forward I don’t think we will have much problems scoring.
“They are aware that if they concede a goal then it will be difficult for them. So we have to try get an early goal. We are ready for the match,” said Mashaba.
He went on: “It’s World Cup qualifiers. If you do not do it now, then you have to wait another four years to play. It’s going to be a tough, high-tempo game. I don’t think anyone will sit back. We will push forward and they will push forward.
Mashaba says Bafana’s recent visit to Angola in the Chan qualifiers has helped them settle in quickly.
“It gave us a chance to know what to expect. So now coming here we knew what to expect in terms of weather. It gave us a chance to prepare.”
Mashaba is not paying too much attention to Angola’s impressive record in World Cup qualifiers, with a record of 18 wins and nine draws in 28 matches.
“We went through all those things. Yesterday, today and tomorrow won’t be the same. It’s good to refer to history, but we can’t always bank on that.
“We are looking at how Angola are doing now. They are playing at home and we need to match them,” he said.
The heat will definitely play a role in how the players perform.
“There’s nothing we can do. We can only worry about things we can control. If people have to collapse, then they should go collapse because if we hold back then we are in trouble,” Mashaba explained.
l Today’s qualifier between the two nations will be their 43rd in the preliminaries for the global showpiece tournament since South Africa’s return to international football in 1992.
This will be the first time they have faced Angola in the World Cup qualifiers, though they have a long history of competitive fixtures against Palancas Negras that they have dominated in the past.
They take a mostly positive qualifier record into the game, with the previous 42 preliminary matches having yielded 25 victories and 10 defeats, with seven games drawn.
Eight of those defeats have come on the road against Nigeria (1992), Congo (1997), Ghana, Democratic Republic of Congo (both 2004), Burkina Faso (2005), Nigeria, Sierra Leone (both 2008) and Ethiopia (2013), which was also their last away qualifier.
After making a disastrous start in their first ever qualifier ahead of the 1994 World Cup in the USA when they lost 4-0 to an excellent Nigerian side that would go on to sparkle in the finals, Bafana Bafana have improved dramatically.
They lost only one more qualifier, home or away, out of their next 20 as they reached back-to-back finals in 1998 and 2002. — Additional reporting by NICK SAID
Shakes looks to put Angola on backfoot
“I don’t want a translator. You guys don’t compromise with your language,” the veteran coach said as he took his seat upon arrival at the venue for today’s 2018 Fifa World Cup qualifier against Angola (4.30pm SA time).
The Bafana Bafana coach will be expecting his players to exert that same authority when they face Palancas Negras, who are sitting in 98th place on the Fifa rankings, in a first leg clash to be played at the 35000-seater stadium.
“We have focused on the two phases of the game in our preparation, which is defending and attacking. We need to switch from defence to attack in a split second. We will also try to match them pound for pound in midfield. And going forward I don’t think we will have much problems scoring.
“They are aware that if they concede a goal then it will be difficult for them. So we have to try get an early goal. We are ready for the match,” said Mashaba.
He went on: “It’s World Cup qualifiers. If you do not do it now, then you have to wait another four years to play. It’s going to be a tough, high-tempo game. I don’t think anyone will sit back. We will push forward and they will push forward.
Mashaba says Bafana’s recent visit to Angola in the Chan qualifiers has helped them settle in quickly.
“It gave us a chance to know what to expect. So now coming here we knew what to expect in terms of weather. It gave us a chance to prepare.”
Mashaba is not paying too much attention to Angola’s impressive record in World Cup qualifiers, with a record of 18 wins and nine draws in 28 matches.
“We went through all those things. Yesterday, today and tomorrow won’t be the same. It’s good to refer to history, but we can’t always bank on that.
“We are looking at how Angola are doing now. They are playing at home and we need to match them,” he said.
The heat will definitely play a role in how the players perform.
“There’s nothing we can do. We can only worry about things we can control. If people have to collapse, then they should go collapse because if we hold back then we are in trouble,” Mashaba explained.
l Today’s qualifier between the two nations will be their 43rd in the preliminaries for the global showpiece tournament since South Africa’s return to international football in 1992.
This will be the first time they have faced Angola in the World Cup qualifiers, though they have a long history of competitive fixtures against Palancas Negras that they have dominated in the past.
They take a mostly positive qualifier record into the game, with the previous 42 preliminary matches having yielded 25 victories and 10 defeats, with seven games drawn.
Eight of those defeats have come on the road against Nigeria (1992), Congo (1997), Ghana, Democratic Republic of Congo (both 2004), Burkina Faso (2005), Nigeria, Sierra Leone (both 2008) and Ethiopia (2013), which was also their last away qualifier.
After making a disastrous start in their first ever qualifier ahead of the 1994 World Cup in the USA when they lost 4-0 to an excellent Nigerian side that would go on to sparkle in the finals, Bafana Bafana have improved dramatically.
They lost only one more qualifier, home or away, out of their next 20 as they reached back-to-back finals in 1998 and 2002. — Additional reporting by NICK SAID
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