Young Warriors on verge of Cosafa semi-final

Namibia took control of Group A at the TotalEnergies Cosafa Under-20 Championship / CAF Under-20 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier on Sunday as they edged hosts Mozambique 1-0 to maintain their perfect start to the competition.

Coach Lucky Shipanga afterwards told the media that he felt sorry for Mozambique – “a great team” – and its supporters, but added that his team arrived ready because of the long time since Namibia has tasted success against this opponent.

Shipanga pointed out that they had targeted Mozambique’s perceived slowness in transition from attack to defence. He also selected fast, hard-working and aggressive players to counter the host team.

“We only had two weeks to put this team together, but they showed the fight of Young Warriors, as our team is called,” Shipanga said.

Rashid Naobeb scored the only goal of the contest in the 18th minute as the Young Warriors followed up their opening victory over Mauritius to move onto six points from two matches.

Onesmus Timotheus of Namibia was named Player of the Match.

The 12-team competition runs until September 27, with the three pool winners and the best runner-up advancing to the semi-finals. The two finalists will qualify for the TotalEnergies CAF Under-20 Africa Cup of Nations Ghana 2027.

Disciplined display

Namibia produced another disciplined display to defeat Mozambique. After Naobeb struck in the 18th minute, the Young Warriors protected their advantage for the remainder of the contest to record a second successive clean sheet.

Namibia had opened their campaign with a 1-0 victory over Mauritius and now have six points from six, with two goals scored and none conceded.

Mozambique had begun with a 4-1 victory over Seychelles but could not find a way through the Namibia defence and remain on three points alongside Seychelles.

• Earlier, Seychelles claimed their first victory of the tournament with a thrilling 4-3 success over Mauritius as Lorenzo Hoareau scored a hat-trick and Naythan Barbe added their fourth goal.

The victory moved Seychelles onto three points in Group A and kept them firmly in contention ahead of their final pool fixture against Namibia on Tuesday (kick-off at 15:00).

Mauritius remain without a point after two games and will conclude their campaign against hosts Mozambique.

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