Saintfiet eyes winning start with Mali

by Staff Reporter

Thursday Sep 05, 2024. 16:00

Mali are the clear favourites in Group I as they kick off their 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying campaign against Mozambique at the Stade du 26 Mars on Friday, September 6.

Kick-off is at 9pm CAT (SA, GMT+2)

The Eagles weren’t at the best in the 2023 edition, although they still topped Group E despite winning just one of their opening three matches.

Eric Chelle guided them to the quarter-finals, but he was sacked in June after a 0-0 draw with Madagascar left the team fourth in their qualifying group for the 2026 World Cup.

Tom Saintfiet was appointed as his successor last month and will turn his attention to continental matters before looking to salvage their World Cup hopes.

The Mambas also featured at the tournament in Ivory Coast, though their stay was brief after failing to progress beyond the group stages.

Chiquinho Conde’s side finished bottom of Group B as they managed to collect just two points from their three matches.

The Southeastern Africans continued their impressive start to qualifying for the 2026 World Cup by recording back-to-back wins against Somalia (2-1) and Guinea (1-0) in June to sit second in Group G behind Algeria on goal difference.