National Under-23 coach Shakes Mashaba is positive for win tonight
Mashaba: Gabon game is a 'must win'
Posted: 2011-11-30 09:32
National Under-23 coach Shakes Mashaba is positive ahead of tonight's match against Gabon in the CAF Under-23 Championship.
KickOff.com had a chat with the coach to get his take on how things are going in Morocco.
Bra Shakes, how are things going at the camp?
Things are fine, so far so good. I was happy with the first match against Ivory Coast, even though I still think we should have won the match. You know, in the first match of a tournament players are always nervous and that is understandable. But we managed to soak up the pressure and take control of the match. We also created numerous goal scoring opportunities.
What are your plans for the second match against Gabon?
We must go all out to win the match; it is as simple as that. Fortunately I went to watch them when they played against Egypt and I realize that the best way to win the match is to force them to defend and try to keep ball possession. I think those are the two most important factors.
Your midfielder Thamsanqa Sangweni was sent off against Ivory Coast. Are you going to replace him with a similar player or are going to make tactical changes against Gabon?
It is not an easy thing to replace a player with another similar player. But we will see what changes we need to make for the match.
On Friday, your house was burgled in Johannesburg. How has that affected you in this tournament?
Fortunately for me, when they broke into my house there was no one home. My daughter was in hospital giving birth to my grandchild and there was no one left in the house and that is the reason why I'm still here. But my elder son is there now making sure that the family is well looked after.
How confident are you that your team will qualify for the semi-final and eventually the Olympics?
I'm very confident and I trust my players a lot. But first we must win against Gabon to stand a chance making it to the last stages of these championships.
Bra Shakes thanks a lot and good luck for the rest of the tournament.
Yes, we need it. Lastly I would like to send my condolences to the family of my friend and former colleague, Bra Styles [Phumo]. It was sad to hear of his passing; from myself and the rest of the team we send our condolences.
: 2011-11-30 10:52
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