Likuena out to regain pride

Likuena fell short against Seychelles on Saturday
Can they bounce back?

Lesotho will be out to regain pride to when it hosts Seychelles in a 2017 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifier at Setsoto Stadium tomorrow afternoon.

Likuena’s chances of qualifying from Group J are all but over after three losses from their opening three games.

Lesotho, yet to register a point, trails Seychelles (4 points), Ethiopia (4) and Algeria (9).

The team’s latest loss was a 2-0 defeat away to Seychelles last Saturday at the Stade Linite.

It was another setback in what hasn’t been a happy campaign for Lesotho. Although Likuena have had good moments, the campaign has been characterised by missed chances.

Likuena led at halftime away to Ethiopia in the first group game before losing 2-1. They played excellently against Algeria last September and the game was tied 1-1 heading into the final ten minutes. But, Algeria managed a 3-1 win at Setsoto in the end.

And, last Saturday, Lesotho had opportunities to at least get a point from Seychelles.

Likuena were downed by goals from Gervais Waye-Hive and Dine Suzette but the score-line may have been different. Tumelo Khutlang had a close range header saved in the 10th minute. Khutlang also had two more chances, one in the 38th minute and another in the 64th, but Lesotho wasn’t able to take advantage of the possession it had.

Moses Maliehe’s team was also caught with two sucker-punch goals.

Firstly, Seychelles struck off a defensive error in the second minute of the game. Their second goal, in the 78th minute, came from a counter-attack while Likuena were pressing for a goal.

Likuena will be out to at least get some points on the board tomorrow. The match is the team’s best chance to get off the mark in the group. Lesotho hosts Ethiopia in June and travels to Algeria in September for the final two games of its 2017 AFCON qualifying campaign.

Maliehe lamented his team’s missed chances after Saturday loss. “We had many chances but, unfortunately, we failed to convert. This is football. We also faced a good team though we knew what to expect, but the early goal made things difficult for us,” Maliehe said.

Likuena skipper Basia Makepe said he was looking forward to turning things around when the teams meet tomorrow.

“It was a good match and we created lots of chances but luck was not on our side. Also, the early goal affected us. Now, we must aim for victory at home to prove a point as well as win by a wider margin,” Makepe said.

Lesotho-Seychelles will be played at Setsoto. Kick-off is at 15:00.

Lesotho’s remaining Group J games

29/03/16 – Lesotho v Seychelles

05/06/16 – Lesotho v Ethiopia

02/09/16 – Algeria v Lesotho

Group J standings

		P	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts.
1	Algeria	3	3	0	0	14	2	12	9
2	Seychelles	3	1	1	1	3	5	-2	4
3	Ethiopia	3	1	1	1	4	9	-5	4
4	Lesotho	3	0	0	3	2	7	-5	0