2021 COSAFA Cup will come to an end this Sunday when Senegal battles the tournament hosts South Africa for the trophy in the final at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium with kickoff at 16:30.
Senegal survived a rocky start to their COSAFA cup campaign despite being the pre-tournament favorites. They opened their campaign with a 2-1 defeat to Namibia finding themselves at the bottom of the group but quickly bounced back and responded with three straight wins starting with 1-0 against Mozambique then 2-1 against Zimbabwe and another 2-1 against Malawi in the final group game finishing on top the group with nine points and thus booking a meeting with Eswatini in the semi-finals.
Aliou Cisse’s side were given a run for their money by the dynamic Eswatini in the semifinals as they had to come 2-0 down to win 3-0 on penalties. Eswatini were brilliant in this tournament and almost pulled a major upset in the semifinal as they were ahead 2-0 in the first half but the Lions of Teranga got hold of the game and equalized in the second half taking the game to extra time and eventually penalties. Eswatini will face Mozambique on Sunday in search for the third-place finish.
Senegal head into match aiming to win the trophy as first guest nation to ever win the title.
South Africa on the other hand have been among the most impressive sides in this tournament. They are hosting the tournament for the fourth time in a row and had failed to reach the final in the last three but time around Bafana Bafana started of their campaign in determination as they are yet to lose a match let alone conceding.
South Africa started off their campaign with three consecutive wins including the 1-0 win against Botswana in their opener then proceeded to another 1-0 win against Eswatini and hammered Lesotho 4-0 in their third group match. Having already secured a spot in the last four Bafana Bafana could afford to take the foot off the gas as they played Namibia to 0-0 draw in their final group match.
However, South Africa resumed their normal service and proceeded to have an emphatic 3-0 victory over Mozambique in the semis. The Bafana Bafana now head into the final full of confidence of lifting the trophy on their home soil.
Senegal vs South Africa head to head
Both sides have met in six occasions since 2008 with Senegal winning twice while South Africa have won once and three encounters ended in draw. Take a look at the results from their previous encounters;
- Senegal 2-1 South Africa Nov 14, 2017
- South Africa 0-2 Senegal Nov 10, 2017
- South Africa 1-0 Senegal Sep 08, 2015
- South Africa 1-1 Senegal Jan 23, 2015
- South Africa 0-0 Senegal Feb 29, 2012
Home
- Senegal 2-1 Malawi
- Senegal 2-1 Zimbabwe
- Senegal 1-0 Mozambique
- Senegal 1-2 Namibia
- Senegal 2-0 Cape Verde
Away
- South Africa 3-0 Mozambique
- South Africa 0-0 Zambia
- South Africa 4-0 Lesotho
- South Africa 1-0 Eswatini
- South Africa 1-0 Botswana
Senegal team news
Senegal have all their players available for the clash.
South Africa team news
Bafana Bafana have all their men available for the match.
Prediction and odds
- South Africa win
- Double chance
- Goals over 2.5
