MBABANE – Green Mamba Coach Mthunzi Ginindza has confirmed that three key players will miss Friday’s CAF Confederation Cup second leg against Primeiro de Agosto in Angola.
Banele ‘Pupu’ Sikhondze, Njabulo ‘D4D’ Ndlovu and Sabelo ‘Sikhali’ Ndzinisa have all been ruled out of the crucial Confederation of African Football (CAF) match.
Sikhondze and Ndlovu picked up knocks during Saturday’s first leg at Somhlolo National Stadium, where Green Mamba suffered a 2-0 defeat, while Ndzinisa is unavailable as he is recovering from undisclosed illness.
Despite the absence of the trio, Ginindza speaking during the team’s send-off briefing at Sigwaca House yesterday, remains confident in the players travelling to Angola and believes they can overturn the first-leg deficit. “As Green Mamba, the players are ready for Friday’s encounter. Having played the first leg, we saw how we conceded those goals and we know which players will win this game for us,” said Ginindza.
“We are proud that our squad is fit and we know how to tackle the second leg. We will ensure the Eswatini flag flies high.”
The coach said the injured players would be missed, but backed the available squad to rise to the occasion. “We do have injuries; ‘Pupu’, ‘D4D’ and ‘Sikhali’ will be out, but we trust that the players we have are ready for the clash. I want to say you will be happy with the team.”
Captain Mthunzi Mkhontfo echoed the coach’s confidence, insisting that the two-goal deficit was not beyond their reach.
Mkhontfo said they had analysed what went wrong in the first-leg. “We sat down and rectified our mistakes. We have to put in more effort. A 2-0 deficit is not an impossible margin. We can overturn that,” he said.
“It is entirely possible to score those goals. We can score three. We are ready.”
Meanwhile, Green Mamba Vice Chairman Mandla Sibiya, speaking on behalf of His Majesty’s Correctional Services Commissioner General and Club President Phindile Dlamini, thanked the Eswatini Football Association (EFA) for its support during the first-leg and the continued backing from both the EFA and Premier League of Eswatini (PLE).
Sibiya said the support had helped the club reduce the costs of its CAF campaign. “We thank the EFA for the support in the first-leg, as well as the continued support from the PLE and EFA. We promise to do better in the second half of this tie,” he said.
“The boys will play and come back with good results. Don’t stop at doing great for Green Mamba only, but for other teams too. We have cut costs because of the support from the EFA.”
Green Mamba will travel with a 30-member delegation comprising 18 players and 12 officials. The delegation will be led by Women’s Football Association Chairman Bonginkhosi Mhlanga. The team will leave this morning and are expected to arrive in Angola before noon, giving the players time to settle and prepare for Friday’s encounter.
The return leg will be played at Estádio 11 de Novembro in Luanda on Friday at 3pm. The assignment represents a major challenge for Green Mamba against an opponent with a much deeper continental history.
Primeiro de Agosto have made numerous appearances in CAF club competitions, including 13 in the Champions League, four in the Confederation Cup and five in the old African Cup of Champions Clubs.
Their best recent continental run came in 2018 when they reached the CAF Champions League semi-finals. They eliminated TP Mazembe in the quarter-finals on away goals after a 1-1 aggregate draw before eventually losing 4-3 on aggregate to eventual champions Espérance de Tunis in the semi-finals.
In the Confederation Cup, Primeiro de Agosto reached the quarter-finals in 2009. They also reached the round of 16 in 2010 and 2011, showing their experience in Africa’s second-tier club competition.
Green Mamba, meanwhile, are looking to make their mark in the Confederation Cup after previous CAF Champions League campaigns that included preliminary-round exits and a 2023 first-round elimination by Mozambique’s UD Songo. The Eswatini side now face the daunting task of scoring at least three goals in Luanda without conceding if they are to overturn the 2-0 deficit and progress.
Leave a comment