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Lerato Chabangu addresses an attentive media entourage yesterday before Bafanas practice session got under way at Peoples Park in Durban. Pictures: Sbonelo Ngcobo
Kevin Lancaster
Moussa Samaki did not travel 6 000km from Bamako, Mali’s capital, to South Africa to watch his team lose, and certainly not to Bafana Bafana in Durban on Saturday.
“Mali is going to win; South Africa cannot beat us,” he said, speaking in French, in the foyer of his hotel in the city yesterday.
With a foreign TV journalist as translator, Samaki said although his stay in Durban had been lovely and the city was fascinating, it would be the stage for Bafana’s demise.
“(Moses Mabhida) is an amazing venue. The security and the people have been so polite and helpful… but my team is going to beat South Africa,” he said with a smile.
Samaki was so confident of victory for his home team he would not answer hypothetical questions about staying here for the semi-final if Mali was knocked out this weekend.
Samaki
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“It is not an issue; we are going to win,” he said.
Fellow Malian Mohammad Hissoura was equally confident about his team’s prospects for Saturday.
“We will beat Bafana if we play well,” he said.
Hissoura has lived in the US for more than 10 years, but was still a “big Mali soccer fan” and was looking forward to the quarter-final clash.
With his wife working at the US consulate in the city, Hissoura had a pleasant surprise when he discovered a trip to visit her would coincide with the Afcon tournament.
Planning to destroy Samaki and Hissoura’s brazen confidence, however, is Bafana midfielder Siphiwe Tshabalala, who took a few minutes before training to speak to the media.
Hissoura
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“It is all about winning the Afcon and uniting the nation,” said Tshabalala.
Tshabalala was expecting a physical encounter from the Malians, but the team’s unity – he said the players felt like family – would see them triumph.
With officials having confirmed on Tuesday that tickets were sold out for the quarter-final game, another packed house is expected at Moses Mabhida Stadium.
l Ticket sales at some Spar outlets for the quarter final match have been chaotic with reports of ticket mix-ups and ticket paper running out.
KwaMashu customer Aubrey Duma said he bought two tickets for the Durban match only to find that the receipt showed it was for Ghana and Cape Verde match in Port Elizabeth. He is heartbroken that won’t be able to attend the sold out game.
Another supporter said he was sold tickets under someone else’s name.
Collin Moodley, the store manager, denied any error from his staff saying customers had given the wrong information. 8P3132
