Bafana Bafana coach Shakes Mashaba has quickly dismissed any thoughts of taking it easy against Nigeria in their final group qualifier on Wednesday.
South Africa booked their place in Equatorial Guinea for the 2015 African Nations Cup after a 2-1 win over Sudan at Moses Mabhida Stadium on Saturday.
Bafana are guaranteed top spot in Group A – meaning the result against the Super Eagles is of no consequence for Mashaba’s side – but the coach has ruled out any thoughts of losing competitive focus and says there is more at stake.
“I would like to say congratulations to the players, [but] we are still left with one game, against Nigeria,” Mashaba said.
“I know people will think it is going to be a walkover; no, we are going to put out our best team. It is more than three points at stake when we go to Nigeria.
“It’s going to be another tough game like the one we played today, which many thought was going to be easy. Thanks to all the supporters, their presence helped us conquer.”
South Africa have still never beaten Nigeria in a competitive men’s senior international match, a record Mashaba is no doubt keen to throw out.
With one eye on next year’s Afcon, Mashaba knows the hard work must continue and revealed his mission for the tournament.