The closer it gets to 9 PM, the more anxious the fans and supporters of the national team become. Expectations are high, despite the draw in Friday's game. The fans have shown confidence in a good result, or rather, a victory for the Mambas. In turn, coach Chiquinho Conde has also expressed confidence and shown optimism regarding a victory in tonight's game.
Nené, a player for the Black Bulls club and one of those called up, made it clear that there is only one objective: victory in tonight's game.
The national team's supporters, known as the Red Wave, have already traveled to neighboring South Africa, where they will closely support the team. Expectations and anxiety for today's game are high, but there is confidence in victory. More than 32 million inhabitants will be united at 9 pm to sing the national anthem, "United People, from the Rovuma to Maputo, millions of arms, one single force," all confident of victory.
Mozambique enters this game with 5 points, resulting from one win and two draws, occupying second place in the group.
Let's remember the achievement of winning 5 points:
In their first match, Mozambique travelled to Mali, where they faced the host nation, a seeded team, in the first round of the group stage. The national team managed a draw after leading 1-0, a result that gave the Mambas the advantage going into halftime. However, in the second half, the home team scored the equalizer, keeping alive the national team's motto: "If you can't win, you can't lose either."“
In their second game, against Guinea-Bissau, another Portuguese-speaking country, the Mambas played at the Zimpeto National Stadium. The Mozambicans were hopeful for victory, although they knew it would be a difficult match. Mozambique started well, scoring first through Guima, who will miss today's game due to injury. Guinea-Bissau managed to equalize and came close to taking the lead, but Renildo went to the goal line to prevent a second goal for the Guineans, which would have been a cold shower for the Mozambican fans. However, as the saying goes in sports: "If you don't score, you risk conceding." And that's what happened: Mozambique, through Elias Macamo, forward for Desportivo de Nacala, scored the winning goal, making the final score 2-1. It was their first victory in this qualifying phase for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations.
In the third round, Mozambique faced Eswatini at the Zimpeto National Stadium. The crowd was more than hopeful for a victory, fully confident that it would be a sure win, as Eswatini was bottom of the table, without any points after the previous game. The match began with Mozambique relentlessly searching for a goal, but only managed to score in the second half through Ratifo, who received an assist from Bruno Langa, a player in the Spanish second division. However, the joy was short-lived, as Eswatini managed to equalize, surprising the fans at Zimpeto.
Today, in the fourth round, Mozambique and Eswatini face each other again, this time in neighboring South Africa, at Mbombela Stadium, at 9 pm. Everyone is hoping for a victory.
