MALI PLAYERS VERY GOOD AND EXPERIANCED- SIHLANGU ASSISTANT COACH SIFISO NTIBANE

Eswatini lost their Total AFCON Qualifier Match against Mali by 6-0 in match that was played on Tuesday afternoon at the Stade du 26 Mars in Bamako. The goals for Mali were scored by Toure, Nene (hattrick), Kamory, and Mamadou.

It was a tough day in office for Sihlangu SeMnikati (Eswatini) as they were completely out-played by the Malians. “It was a tough match for us as we were playing against good and experienced players. It was difficult for our players to mark good dribblers as on one-on-one situations; they easily eliminated our players,”said Sifiso Ntibane who is Sihlangu SeMnikati assistant coach.

The coach also highlighted that due to the pressure that was applied by the Malians, they were forced to be more compact in the second half. “We had to be more compact in the second half in order not to allow them more space to play,” Ntibane said.

Eswatini will now focus on the qualification for the TotalEnergies CHAN Finals where Sihlangu SeMnikati will play against Madagascar in December 2024. The aggregate winners of this round will qualify for the finals of this competition which will be played in Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda as from February 1-28, 2025.