Coach: It’s all about winning

Amajita coach Thabo Senong (above) says they will take their third-place play-off against Nigeria in the 2019 Afcon in Niger as seriously as any other game they play when the sides meet at the Seyni Kouche Stadium today.

Senong says it is vital to educate his players about the importance of winning every game, which will help his players in their development.

“Every game is important, we approach every match with the same mentality, which is to win and this is another opportunity for the players, another opportunity for us as a team to try and fight to win a game because we are in a performance stage and we are also trying to develop players,” said the Amajita coach.

“We must teach them the importance of winning – that is the approach we will have.”

Amajita and Nigeria meet for the second time, having drawn 0-0 in the group stage.

Both teams lost their respetive semifinal matches, with the South Africans being edged out 1-0 by Senegal, while the Nigerians lost 4-3 on penalties to Mali after the match finished 1-1 after 90 minutes.

Amajita skipper Khulekani Kubheka says they will be looking to forget what happened in their previous game against Nigeria and adds that he is blessed to have been given the opportunity to play in the tournament.

“We need to go out and give our best,” Kubheka said.