Swazi Observer

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COACHLESS, CLUELESS, WINLESS

By NOMALUNGELO PHIRI | 2024-11-20

Mali...................................................................4(6)
Eswatini..............................................................0(0)
SOCCER - TOTALLY hammered!
Mali cruised to a 6-0 win over Sihlangu in an AFCON Qualifiers second leg match played at Stade de 26 Mars in Bamako last night.

Eswatini took on Mali without head coach Zdravko Loogarusic, who was reported to have gone AWOL before the team’s trip to South Africa where they played a 1-1 against Guinea-Bissau at Mbombela Stadium last Friday.

Only a fine performance from Sihlangu goalkeeper Xolani Gama kept the score from becoming even more embarrassing, as coach Sifiso ‘Nuro’ Ntibane was given a reality check on just how far off the elite level of international football his team is. The 6-0 is one of the heaviest defeats Eswatini have suffered in senior international football.

Mali dominated throughout the 90 minutes and scored their goals via Tore, Dorgeles and Doumbia, barely breaking a sweat as they outclassed the opposition. Mali started brightly and claimed the lead as early as the 7th minute, with Toure putting the home side ahead.

Toure was a menace in attack for the hosts, twice shooting wide of Gama’s left-hand post in the opening 16 minutes after Sihlangu failed to close down the space for the Mali forward to operate in.

Having been warned of Toure’s potency, Sihlangu’s defence again stood off him for too long in the 17th minute and this time around it was Dorgeles, who picked his spot with unerring accuracy, striking a lofted shot into the top corner of the goal from the edge of the box making it 2-0.

Mali made it 3-0 in the 23rd minute through Dorgeles, who completed his brace.
He turned and showed great composure to wrong-foot the central defenders and Gama before shooting low into the net with his left foot.

At this stage, the home side was all over Sihlangu. Just before half time, Mali made of 4-0 and it was Doumbia, who scored in the 43rd minute.

The match went to break with Mali leading 4-0. Mali continued to pile pressure in the second half as they did not take their foot off the pedal. Eswatini were chasing shadows as they never threatened the opposition.

Dorgeles was back at it in the 75th minute, completing his hat-trick with a fine strike to make it 5-0. It was a one-way traffic as Eswatini failed to stamp authority in this match. Mali then sealed their win in the 93rd with Doumbia, completing his brace with the final nail on Sihlangu’s coffin.

Mali won 7-0 on aggregate as they won 1-0 in the first leg played at Mbombela Stadium. Eswatini, alongside Guinea-Bissau have failed to qualify for TotalEnergies AFCON billed for Morocco next year. Guinea-Bissau on other hand lost 2-1 to Mozambique.

The nation's pride finished at the bottom of the log table with two points after six games in Group I. They are without a win as they only drew twice and lost the other games. Mali and Mozambique have qualified for the AFCON finals.

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