The Cape Verde national team will face its South African counterpart at 10 pm today, Saturday, at the “Charles Konan Bane” stadium in the quarter-finals of the 2023 African Cup of Nations, currently being held in Côte d’Ivoire.
The Cape Verde national team, which snatched the rug from under the feet of the big teams in the tournament, thanks to its positive results, which were the focus of everyone’s attention, collides with the hopes of South Africa, which is seeking to overcome the obstacle of the Blue Sharks in this round.
The Cape Verde national team relies on a group of important players among its ranks who represent basic pillars, as this team is distinguished by its team football that impressed everyone, especially since it scored 8 goals that came from 7 different players.
Cape Verde national team coach Pedro Bobista stressed on his players the need to focus in order to continue the strong start that the team started in the group stage. He asked them to focus and avoid making mistakes, especially since the knockout rounds cannot be divided into two and there must be a winner and a loser in them.
On the other hand, Hugo Bruce’s men, the coach of the South African national team, know that the task will not be easy for Cape Verde, which achieved a wonderful journey by topping a group that includes seven-time champion Egypt and four-time champion Ghana, achieving 7 points, before eliminating Mauritania in the last 16 with a late goal from Penalty.
Bruce is counting on many stars in the team, including Percy Tau, the Egyptian Al-Ahly striker, who contributed to the team’s qualification to the quarter-finals after participating in 4 matches with South Africa since the start of the tournament. In 360 minutes, he scored one goal and did not assist any goals, as the player carries the hopes of Bafana. Bafana, in winning the title.
The South African national team achieved victory over the Moroccan national team with a score of 2-0, qualifying to face the Cape Verde national team, which eliminated the Mauritania national team with a fatal goal in the 88th minute from a penalty kick.
The main referees committee of the Confederation of African Football decided to appoint Senegalese referee Ndala as referee for the match against Cape Verde and South Africa, while Egyptian referee Ashour will manage the VAR room in the awaited match.
