…as Mafoso remains hopeful
Leemisa Thuseho
LIKUENA’S hopes of qualifying for the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) are hanging by a thread following their painful 2-0 defeat to Gabon on Friday, leaving Tuesday’s return fixture a must-win encounter.
Played at Stade de Franceville in Gabon, the match proved a frustrating outing for Lesotho, who struggled to contain their opponents and suffered their third consecutive defeat in the qualifying campaign.
Two penalties were awarded against Likuena, with Gabon converting one and missing the other. Their second goal came after Lesotho failed to deal with a corner kick.
The defeat followed earlier losses of 2-1 to Niger and 2-0 to Morocco, leaving Likuena rooted at the bottom of Group A without a point after three matches.
Morocco lead the standings with nine points, followed by Gabon on six, while Niger occupy third position with three points.
With six matches scheduled for each team, only the top two sides in the group will qualify for the 2027 AFCON finals, which will be co-hosted by Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania.
Likuena now turn their attention to Tuesday’s return fixture against Gabon at Peter Mokaba Stadium in Polokwane, South Africa, in what has become a defining moment in their qualification campaign.
Anything short of victory would leave Lesotho’s qualification hopes in serious jeopardy, with another defeat potentially ending their campaign altogether.
A loss would leave Likuena with just two matches remaining and a maximum of six points still available. Gabon, meanwhile, would move to nine points, joining Morocco, who already have nine. Both teams would then be beyond Lesotho’s reach, meaning even victories over Morocco and Niger in next year’s remaining fixtures would not be enough to secure a top-two finish.
Recognising the importance of Tuesday’s encounter, the Lesotho Football Association (LeFA) has announced free entry to the match in a bid to rally support behind the national team.
Despite the difficult position, coach Bob Mafoso remains hopeful that his charges can salvage their qualification campaign by getting a positive result in South Africa.
Before Friday’s encounter, Mafoso had emphasised the importance of collecting points from the two matches against Gabon to avoid going into next year’s final fixtures under pressure or already eliminated.
“We understand the importance of the two matches, and we have to collect some points to avoid going to next year’s matches knowing that we are already out,” Mafoso said.
Following Friday’s defeat, Mafoso admitted that his team had made qualification considerably more difficult but insisted that their hopes were not yet over.
He said the players needed to regroup and ensure they collected something from Tuesday’s encounter.
“And we are aware that we have made things very difficult for us. I am sure that mathematically, we still need three games to go. We have to make sure that we get something in South Africa,” Mafoso said.
“We still have hope and let us see what happens in South Africa.”
The team, which travelled back from Gabon after Friday’s encounter, is expected to arrive in Polokwane on Sunday morning ahead of Tuesday’s crucial clash.
Failure to turn their fortunes around would leave Lesotho facing another wait for an opportunity to pursue a maiden appearance at the continental showpiece.