Amajita coach Raymond Mdaka has expressed confidence in his team’s ability to adapt and overcome Colombia in the last 16 of the FIFA World Cup U20, scheduled to take place at Estadio Fiscal on Wednesday evening. 

The match kicks off at 21:30, and the African champions are looking to make history by reaching the quarterfinals for the first time in their history.

“We’ve been watching Colombia since we knew we were playing them,” Mdaka said. 

“They are a smart team, very disciplined in terms of their system, in terms of their formation, but like any other game, there are areas where we think as a team we can be able to explore, areas that we can go into in terms of the spaces that they leave. But they are a good team.”

Mdaka’s men are going into this crucial match having finished second in Group E with six points, earned from wins against New Caledonia and the United States, and a loss to France in the opening game. 

Colombia, on the other hand, topped their Group F with five points, courtesy of a win against Saudi Arabia and draws against Norway and Nigeria.

According to Mdaka, Colombia’s defensive record is impressive, but his team has identified areas to exploit. 

“They don’t concede that much if you look into their record, and much as they leave some spaces where we can explore defensively, they look very organized,” he said.

Despite the challenge ahead, Mdaka is confident that his team has the character to adapt and overcome. 

“The style of play will be a little different, but I think one thing that we’re fighting for, and we’re getting there, is how we quickly adapt to situations or adapt to playing styles in terms of playing different teams coming from different countries with different kinds of play,” he said.

Mdaka added that his team has been working hard to prepare for Colombia and is eager to put their plans into action.

“But this is a team that we’ve looked into, a team that we are still going to work on overnight so that we have the best approach when we play them.”

If Amajita can overcome Colombia, it will be a historic moment for the team, marking their first-ever quarterfinal appearance in the competition. 

This would be a significant milestone, especially considering that they had only managed one win in the tournament before this edition, which was against Honduras in 2009. 

Reaching the last 16 for the second time after their impressive run in Egypt in 2009, the African champions will be looking to make more history.