COSAFA U-20: Amajita won’t change approach for Angola – Mngomeni

South Africa’s under-20 boys national team assistant coach, Thabo Mngomeni, has ruled out the prospect of Amajita altering their approach to Friday’s COSAFA Youth Championship game against Angola.

He gave a hint at the approach after seeing off Eswatini 2-0 to book a last-four place from Group B at the tournament underway in Namibia. The former Orlando Pirates man insisted that overcoming the hosts in the decisive group stage match on Wednesday was tougher than the scoreline might suggest.

“We could see that at the beginning their plan was to sit back and try to catch us on the counter attack,” Mngomeni told COSAFA media.

“We managed to break the wall that was put in front of us. These are the things that you are looking for. You want to see different approaches by opponents in such [tournaments].”

Asked if the coaches are likely to come up with a different game plan for Angola, the former Bafana Bafana players insisted that Amajita would stay true to their playing ethos.

“For any team that is going to the semifinals in any competition, there has to be something in them. [However], I don’t think we will change our approach. We like to give our players freedom— as long as the freedom is coming with results,” he said.

Rivalries will be renewed in the semifinals for girls and boys, following the group phase conclusion on Wednesday. Zambia edged Botswana 1-0 in a decisive Group B match and now date neighbours and rivals Malawi in the boys’ semifinal on Friday, July 11, 2025.

The Young Flames cruised to the last-four stage after pushing aside Namibia 2-0 on Tuesday to build on an opening 2-1 win over Zimbabwe and a 1-1 draw with Angola and finish as group A leaders.

The second semifinal will see regional giants South Africa facing Angola in the other contest for the boys’ section. There are also interesting matches for the women’s section with Zambia set to take on Group B runners up Botswana in the semifinal.

This will be followed by yet another potential grudge battle between South African girls and their Namibian counterparts. The football tournament is part of the Region 5 Games involving other disciplines in Namibia.

BOYS:

FRIDAY’S FIXTURES

Semifinals

UNAM Stadium

South Africa vs Angola (KO 12h00; 10h00 GMT)

Malawi vs Zambia (KO 15h00; 13h00 GMT)

GIRLS:

FRIDAY’S FIXTURES

Semifinals

Hage Geingob Stadium

Zambia vs Botswana (KO 12h00; 10h00 GMT)

Namibia vs South Africa (KO 15h00; 13h00 GMT)