South Africa won the Africa Cup of Nations game 3-2 over Zimbabwe on Monday, earning qualification for the knockout stages thanks to Oswin Appollis’ late penalty.
Bafana Bafana must announce their opponent for the round of 16 on Wednesday. Ivory Coast, the defending champion, or Cameroon, the five-time champion, are likely to win.
Egypt, which rested stars like Mohamed Salah and has already secured first place, won Group B with seven points in Agadir’s 0-0 draw against Angola.
Zimbabwe had one point each, while South Africa had six and Angola had two. One of the top four third-placed teams, Angelo, might be able to reach the knockout stages.
South African Patrice Motsepe, president of the Confederation of African Football (CAF), was among the small but obnoxious crowds at Marrakech that saw Bafana Bafana gain traction early on.
Appollis’ low sixth-minute shot, which Zimbabwe goalkeeper Washington Arubi, was intercepted just before the line, and he grasped the ball.
South Africa was ahead in the conflict of neighboring countries a minute later when Tshepang Moremi, a rising star, was on hand.
Moremi received the ball playing across the pitch just outside the box. A deflection off Divine Lunga led to the release of a goal-bound shot that lobbed over 40-year-old Arubi into the net.
Zimbabwe fell short of its goals, but Motherwell’s Scottish Premiership side Tawanda Maswanhise scored the winning goal in the 19th minute to give them adeserved victory.
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Frustrations
Maswanhise dribbled past two opponents to score the ball into the far corner, which the South African national’s captain and goalkeeper Ronwen Williams had already received.
South Africa was blasted by the equalizer. They were fortunate not to fall behind as the match drew near the half-hour mark, which was a bronze medallist at the 2024 AFCON.
Unmarked Munashe Garananga should have headed the ball head-over from close range after a Zimbabwe free kick was floated into the goalmouth.
Just before half-time, South Africa’s frustrations with being unable to dominate erupted. Sipho Mbule, who had already been warned, got into a fight with the Moroccan referee, putting himself at risk of receiving a second yellow and a red.
South Africa aggressively began the second period, as was the case in the first half. Lyle Foster, a Burnley striker, gave them a 50-minute lead back.
The veteran goalkeeper outsprinted the veteran goalkeeper as the player raced after receiving a headed back pass from Arubi, who was slow to reacting.
After scoring against Angola, the 25-year-old scored the winner of the tournament. The only South African player in the major European league right now is him.
Maswanhise was a constant threat throughout the second half, and he almost equaled scoring again. A shot from the box’s edge was bent to the post by him.
After soaking up some pressure for a while, Aubrey Modiba scored an own goal on 73 minutes.
Maswanhise found himself parried by Williams after receiving a superb long pass from substitute Tawanda Chirewa. Modiba was struck by the rebound and rolled into the net.
Appollis then scored from a penalty in the 82nd minute to give Bafana a third consecutive lead, which they successfully kept.
