Mongomo, Equatorial Guinea – Coach Shakes Mashaba is targeting Monday’s tournament opener against Algeria to set the tone for what he expects is going to be a great Africa Cup of Nations for Bafana Bafana.
Mashaba says that right from the start that he packed to stay until February 9 – the day after the final of the biennial showpiece in Bata, which is about 260km from the team’s base in Mongomo, where they will be playing all their group matches.
Bafana, however, are in Group C, better known as the “group of death”. It includes Ghana and Senegal and it’s going to be difficult to qualify for the quarter-finals as one of the first- or second-placed teams in the group.
But a win over tournament favourites Algeria could go a long way in setting the platform for an assault on African glory that didn’t even seem remotely possible six months ago.
And, being the first match of the tournament, it could be easier for the South Africans to get in a sucker punch against a team who were close to beating eventual champions Germany in the round of 16 at last year’s World Cup in Brazil.
“All 16 teams wish to win their first game,” Mashaba told the media yesterday after the team arrivedrom Libreville, Gabon.
“Once you don’t win the first game it puts you under pressure, and then you have to double your efforts to win the last two games.
“But another thing we have to be aware of is that the first game of a tournament is not easy – it is unpredictable, and nobody is sure what will happen.
“We are trying to make an impression, to get a result, and then start going forward.”
Mashaba likes to talk a good game, but even he knows it’s going to be difficult to try to break down the teams in their group.
However, Bafana’s successful training camp in Gabon is going to give them a loads of confidence. Especially after the 3-0 win over a full-strength Mali line-up, which showed that Bafana could cope with the physical challenges posed by the big West African sides.
“It is a tough group. You are talking about Algeria, the No 1 side in Africa; Senegal, who have an expensive squad of players – all playing abroad – and Ghana, who are a strong side,” Mashaba said.
“The biggest problem is that you have three types of approaches, three styles, in all the matches.
“But fortunately for us, things went well in Gabon – we managed to play three types of teams. We played Zambia, we took on Cameroon, who are strong, physical and quick going forward with their combinations, and we played Mali.
“We played some of the teams who are favourites to win Afcon, but we are ready. The preparations went well.”
The expectations of the nation are high following Bafana’s unbeaten qualifying campaign. But Mashaba says his team aren’t feeling the pressure there is on them to win the Afcon for the first time in 19 years.
“It goes without saying that if you plant a flower and it blossoms, a woman says she wants more. When we started we were building a team for the future and things went well for us, so now everyone says we have to win the Afcon.
“But I don’t want people to doubt us – we stand a good chance of competing and going to the final.”
Algerian journalists, who were later asked by Ghanaian officials to leave the Hotel Mongomo where Bafana and Ghana had booked to stay, were trying to find out how much Mashaba knew about their national side.
But the veteran coach was playing his cards close to his chest, and chose to talk about his young side, who had surprised everybody with an unbeaten run in their last 10 matches.
“It is dangerous knowing another team’s strong points – it might lead to paralysis,” Mashaba joked when asked about Algeria’s strengths. “We know what Algeria can do and which players they rely on, but yesterday, today and tomorrow – well, it’s never the same.
“Things change, so we are expecting everything, and that is why I am saying the preparation helped us going into this tournament.” - Saturday Star