Senegal upbeat, ready for SA

Top African side grabs away win over Namibia

SENEGAL coach Aliou Cissé was in buoyant mood after watching his side dismantle Namibia in their African Nations Cup qualifier on Saturday and has now set his sights on victory over South Africa tomorrow.

The teams will clash in the Nelson Mandela Challenge at Orlando Stadium.

While Bafana Bafana lick their wounds from a defeat in Mauritania, Senegal grabbed a 2-0 win in a tricky away tie in Windhoek, with goals from West Ham United midfielder Cheikhou Kouyate and Southampton forward Sadio Mane.

Namibia did have their chances – Peter Shalulile of National First Division side Highlands Park missed a one-on-one chance, as did new BidVest Wits midfielder Wangu Gome.

But Senegal deserved their win and Cissé believes they are building something special.

“I am proud of my players,” Cissé told reporters. “I need to see the match calmly to analyse with confidence. But I am happy and proud of my players, because the main thing is to win. “We won away in a complicated country. “The midfield is still under construction. Building a team is not easy, it takes time. I brought in young players and we have others to come and strengthen us to have a competitive team in the long term.”

Cissé was also giving nothing away on what type of formation he would have against Bafana Bafana, saying he has flexibility.

“I played 4-3-3 today, and I’m used to a 4-4-2, but nothing is fixed. It all depends on how a player will fit in gaming systems in place.”

Cissé is a former midfielder with the national team. He was captain of the Senegal side that reached the quarterfinals of the 2002 Fifa World Cup in Japan and South Korea. He was appointed as national team coach in March and has won all five matches in charge so far.