International Football
SOUTH AFRICA FACES CRUNCHY BACK-TO-BACK WORLD CUP QUALIFIERS
South Africa’s national team, Bafana Bafana is facing one of its nervy encounters as Senegal’s Taranga Lions call on Friday.
It is a repeat fixture of the Match Day 2 of the third round of African qualifiers for the World Cup. South Africa won the original match through a penalty kick that FIFA adjudged was concocted by the Ghanaian referee of the encounter.
The match was therefore annulled and has to be replayed. The original fixture for this Friday, which is supposed to be the reverse encounter, has therefore been moved to next week Tuesday.
The back-to-back encounter against Senegal is very crucial. Senegal needs to win just one to qualify. But the South Africans have a more Herculean task. They must win both encounters!
Sports Village Square gathers from African News Agency that most players have reported for camp apart from Kaizer Chiefs players who were travelling from the Eastern Cape on Monday.
But in the home game this Friday, South Africa is already handicapped as midfielder Bongani Zungu will miss the encounter in Polokwane.
But he will be available for the return leg against the same Senegal in Dakar four days later.
The France-based player was red-carded in South Africa’s World Cup qualifier against Burkina Faso last month at the FNB Stadium.
The matter was taken up by the FIFA Disciplinary Committee who decided against imposing a further ban on the midfielder – except to fine him.
“The player Bongani Zungu is regarded as having breached art. 48 par.1 c) of the FIFA Disciplinary Code in the match played between South Africa and Burkina Faso.
“The player is suspended for one match, including automatic suspension, which will be served in the match between South Africa and Senegal of November 10,” said FIFA in a statement.
Well-travelled Portuguese coach Paulo Duarte has been named as Guinea’s new coach, less than a month before their next round of World Cup qualifiers.
Duarte, 56, has twice previously coached Burkina Faso and taken charge of Gabon and Togo, while also coaching at clubs in Portugal, France, Tunisia, Angola and Saudi Arabia.
Guinea’s football federation gave no contract details when they made the announcement on Monday, but said they would be looking for Duarte to “restructure their national team”.
Guinea trail leaders Algeria by eight points in their World Cup qualifying group with four games remaining, leaving them with only a slim chance of qualification.
They play Somalia away on September 5 and then Algeria at home on September 8 in their next two qualifiers although a stadium ban means Guinea have moved their home game to Casablanca, Morocco.
-Reuters
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Veteran coach Louis van Gaal says he has been cured of cancer and is keen for a return to the higher levels of the game.
The 73-year-old announced three years ago that he was suffering from prostate cancer, but told a Dutch television talk show, “I’m no longer bothered by cancer.”
When he announced his illness, Van Gaal was the coach of the Dutch national team, but he has not worked since the last World Cup in Qatar in 2022.
“Two years ago, I had a few operations. It was all bad then. But it all worked out in the end. I have check-ups every few months, and that’s going well. I’m getting fitter and fitter,” he said.
Van Gaal, whose career has included stints at Ajax Amsterdam, Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Manchester United, reiterated a lack of interest in returning to club management but said becoming the national coach of a top-tier country could tempt him back.
He now serves as a special advisor to Ajax.
-Reuters
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In a compelling twist of football destiny, Davide Ancelotti is stepping into his own spotlight as he begins his first head coaching role at Brazilian club Botafogo—just months after parting ways with his legendary father, Carlo Ancelotti, at Real Madrid.
The 35-year-old has been appointed as Botafogo’s new manager, the club announced on Tuesday, following the sacking of Renato Paiva. Davide, who has spent the last decade working alongside his father at some of Europe’s top clubs—including Bayern Munich, Napoli, Everton, and Real Madrid—has signed a one-year deal with the Rio-based team.
This marks a significant milestone for the younger Ancelotti, whose career has long been shaped by his father’s influence, but who now faces the challenge of carving his own identity on the touchline.
The move comes shortly after both father and son departed Real Madrid at the end of last season, with Carlo taking over the Brazilian national team. Now, in a poetic alignment, father and son find themselves on different paths within Brazilian football—one leading the Seleção, the other steering the fortunes of a storied domestic club.
Botafogo’s decision to appoint Davide follows a controversial parting with Paiva, who was dismissed just days after their exit from the Club World Cup. Though he oversaw a stunning win over Champions League holders Paris Saint-Germain, a 1-0 extra-time loss to Palmeiras in the round of 16 proved to be his final act after just four months in charge.
As Davide Ancelotti begins this new chapter, all eyes will be on whether the son of one of football’s most decorated managers can step out from his father’s shadow—and perhaps, in time, build a legacy of his own.
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