South Africa go into their final Group A clash at the 2019 Africa Under-20 Cup of Nations knowing that victory over Burundi on Friday will seal a place in the semi-finals, and in turn a ticket to the 2019 FIFA Under-20 World Cup in Poland in May.

A draw will be enough if Nigeria defeat Niger in the other pool game, while if both matches end in draws then second position in the pool will come down to goals-scored between South Africa and Niger, with the latter holding the edge at this stage.

Amajita have battled for goals in the campaign so far, with just one in their two matches, but have looked resolute in defence.
“Our game-plan every match is to make sure we keep it solid in defence and keep it tight, which is very important,” coach Thabo Senong said. “But you can see that we are limited in attack compared to other teams like Niger and Nigeria, they are very mobile.

“Some of our strikers were not released [by their clubs], but I still believe we will have a good plan against Burundi. It won’t be easy but we will have to work hard to create more chances.

“We have to come up with ideas to scores goals. It is the team’s responsibility to score, and we need to find the back of the net if we want to be part of the tournament going forward.”