29 Mar 2023

Botswana’s African Cup of Nations (AFCON) campaign woes deepened following a 3-2 drubbing they suffered at the hands of Equatorial Guinea in Francistown on Tuesday.

Botswana, in Group J together with Tunisia, Equatorial Guinea, and Libya, languish at the bottom of the table with a point after playing a total of four games.

Tunisia lead the pack with 10 points, followed by Equatorial Guinea with nine points while Libya occupy the third spot having amassed three points.

The Zebras have two games left to finish the group campaign; an away game against Tunisia in September and a home fixture against Libya in June.

The visitors were determined to carry on where they left off last Friday in Malabo during a fixture they won 2-0 against the Zebras.

Their strategy was simple; to jam the midfield to deny the home side the latitude to play and catch them on the counter.

They opened the score sheet in the 13th minute from kick-off through their skipper Juan Lopez who tapped in to give his side the lead.

Tumisang Orebonye’s attempt to level matters for the Zebras went to waste as his shot went wide. However, the home side continued to pile pressure on the visitors in the 37th minute through a beauty by the nib-footed and composed Mbatshi Elias.

However, the Zebras’ 12th player bubble was quickly blown by an own goal by Lebogang Ditsile two minutes later following the home side’s state of confusion at the back. The game went into recess with Equatorial Guinea leading the Zebras by 2-1.

The second half saw the visitors employ the same modus operandi and scored on a counter in the 56th minute through Ivan Edu Salvador who rounded off Ezekiel Phoko to score. Zebras managed to salvage a second goal through a well-taken penalty by Kabelo Seakanyeng. The loss means Zebras need to go back to the drawing board and try to seek a winning strategy that will redeem their poor and uninspiring showing.    ENDS