Malawi (0) 0
Eswatini (0) 1
Sibonelo 73rd
MBABANE – The national Under-23 men’s squad secured a famous away victory against Malawi in their TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) first-leg qualifier yesterday.
The decisive moment arrived in the 73rd minute when Sibonelo Vilakati struck the back of the net to hand Eswatini a crucial 1-0 advantage heading into the second leg at Somhlolo National Stadium on Tuesday.
The build-up saw Njabulo Gama dance his way into the danger area, eliminating defenders in the process before picking out Vilakati with a clever pass, allowing him to unleash an unstoppable cracker past the Malawian goalkeeper Julius Banda.
The aggregate winner of this tie will advance to face Algeria in the second round of the preliminary matches.
The qualifiers also serve as a pathway for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games (LA28) scheduled to take place from July 14 to July 30, 2028. The tournament’s decisive final stages will culminate when Egypt hosts the 2027 Under-23 Africa Cup of Nations in November 2027, where the ultimate continental spots for the Olympic Games will be secured.
The match started at a high tempo, with both sides searching for an early opener, which proved elusive throughout the first 45 minutes.
The two nations struggled to carve out clear-cut opportunities, though it was the hosts who nearly broke the deadlock two minutes before the half-hour mark. This came when their troublesome Mwisho Mhango unleashed a powerful shot that narrowly missed the target with goalkeeper Xolani Sithole beaten.
The Young Flames came close again shortly before the break, but were denied by the upright before the defence cleared the danger for a fruitless corner. Nothing could separate the two sides heading into the interval as they remained deadlocked at 0-0.
The second half was almost a replica of the first stanza, as Malawi continued to pile on the pressure in search of the opening goal, but it was Eswatini who made the first attempt when Njongo ‘Jakalazi’ Mazibuko let fly a scorcher that narrowly went wide.
Host goalkeeper Banda was forced to make a crucial save five minutes before regulation time when Njabulo Gama broke free before unleashing a shot from outside the box, which was tipped over for a fruitless corner.
This proved to be the final notable chance of the encounter as the visitors successfully preserved their precious lead.
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