Sport24.co.za | Bafana Bafana, fans sweat on final day AFCON results
Cape Town – Bafana Bafana and their supporters face an anxious wait to discover whether or not they will progress to the last 16 stage of this year’s Africa Cup on Nations (AFCON) tournament.
Starting the tournament with a 1-0 defeat to the Ivory Coast, Bafana bounced back with a 1-0 win against Namibia courtesy of a Bongani Zungu goal.
It was therefore all to play for against Morocco in their final Group D match on Monday with a draw sure to guarantee Stuart Baxter’s men a passage to the next round.
Alas, it was not meant to be.
South Africa suffered a heartbreaking 1-0 defeat against the Atlas Lions thanks to a 90th minute M’bark Boussoufa strike.
Bafana failed to register a single shot on target and only had two attempts at goal in the 90 minutes.
Playing at the same time, the Ivory Coast beat Namibia 4-1 to finish second in the group, behind Morocco.
With a third place finish in the group, the defeat leaves progression in the tournament out of Baxter’s charges’ hands and having to rely on results in Tuesday’s Group E and F matches.
The top two teams from each group (A-F) will advance to the Round of 16, with the four best third-placed teams (from the six groups) also qualifying.
In Tuesday’s final round of matches, South Africa will need several results to go their way.
Depending on what happens in the Group F matches, Bafana may need some help in Group E’s final day matches.
Ghana will need to beat or draw with Guinea-Bissau while Cameroon must, ideally, beat Benin. A draw between Cameroon and Benin could be enough to see Bafana through, provided the Group E elimination scenarios haven’t materialised.
In Group E, Tunisia and Mali will have to preferably beat Mauritania and Angola, respectively.
Should Mauritania and Angola win however, Bafana will be eliminated, regardless.
Should Mauritania win and Angola draw, Bafana will also be eliminated, regardless.
Should Mauritania draw and Angola win or draw, Bafana’s fortunes will be determined by results from Group F
Group F’s matches will be played at 18:00 while Group E’s will follow at 21:00 on Tuesday.