Angola Coach Rues Costly Mistakes In Bafana Bafana Defeat
Angola coach Patrice Beaumelle expressed his disappointment after his side’s defeat, admitting that gifting chances to a top team like South Africa would inevitably lead to punishment.
The Palancas Negras went down 2-1 to Bafana Bafana in their opening Group B match at the Grand Stade de Marrakech on Monday evening.
After South Africa took the lead through Oswin Appollis in the 21st minute, Angola responded well and found an equaliser through Show in the 36th minute. The midfielder flicked Fredy’s free kick at the near post to beat goalkeeper Ronwen Williams.
The Southern African side grew in confidence thereafter, taking the game to Bafana Bafana and enjoying a strong spell of dominance. However, Bafana coach Hugo Broos made key adjustments in the second half, withdrawing Mohau Nkota and introducing Tshepang Moremi, which helped shift the momentum back in South Africa’s favour.
Bafana were eventually rewarded when Aubrey Modiba and Moremi combined to set up Lyle Foster, who curled home the winner in the 79th minute. The result condemned Angola to defeat in an AFCON opening match for the first time.
“Obviously, we are a little disappointed to lose our opening match, because when you start a competition, it is always important to pick up points,” Beaumelle said on the CAF website.
“We made two mistakes, and against a team of this level, every mistake is punished immediately. On our side, we must keep our heads up and move forward because we still have two matches to play.”
The victory moved South Africa to the top of Group B with three points, level with Egypt, who also recorded a 2-1 win over Zimbabwe on Monday.
The top two sides will face each other in Agadir on Friday. Egypt remain the only team to have beaten Bafana Bafana at the 1996 AFCON, although that did not prevent South Africa from going on to win the tournament on home soil.
Angola, who like South Africa made their AFCON debut in 1996, will face Zimbabwe on the same day at the Stade de Marrakech.
