Yanga secured qualification for the first round of the CAF Champions League yesterday with a hard-fought 2-1 victory over Botswana’s Gaborone United.
The most important thing for Yanga was reaching the next stage, but it was clear that the victory did not come easily against Sean Connor’s side.
It was a game of two halves, with Yanga dominating the first half before their opponents came strongly into the match after the break.
Yanga started the game at a high tempo and caught their opponents off guard. For much of the opening 20 minutes, Gaborone United found themselves pinned back as Yanga used their dominance to take an early lead through Peter Shalulile.
There were other chances, including one for Selemani Mwalimu, which, had he taken it well, could perhaps have seen Yanga finish the match within the first 45 minutes.
After the break, Gaborone United increased the pressure in search of an equaliser. Already 1-0 down, they had little to lose.
They took risks by pushing more players forward, and that was when the pressure on Yanga began to show. Some have blamed head coach Manqoba Mngqithi for his decision to substitute Peter Shalulile and Stephane Aziz Ki, but it was clear that his plan was to use the pace of the players coming on, Albert Kangwanda and Hussein Zokouane, to catch Gaborone United off guard as they left plenty of space at the back.
The plan worked, as Cheick Ibrahim Toure’s second goal came from a counterattack, with Kangwanda setting up Toure to score.
However, a lapse in concentration by captain Bakari Mwamnyeto saw him lose possession while the team was building an attack. Gaborone exploited the opening to launch an attack that resulted in a goal in the 86th minute.
The goal increased the pressure even further, as another Gaborone goal would have eliminated Yanga from the competition.
Speaking after the match, Yanga head coach Manqoba Mngqithi said he had a good plan for the second half, but its execution did not go as expected. However, the most important thing for him was the victory that sent them through to the first round.
"It was a match that was in our hands for much of the game, but we did not take our chances to finish it early. That is what happens when you fail to take your chances; you put yourself under more pressure. This was a match we could have won by many goals, but I am happy. The players fought hard and we managed to get the victory we needed and progress to the next stage," Manqoba said.
Gaborone appeared determined to make an impact at this stage of the competition, having prepared thoroughly both on and off the pitch.
There were several incidents before the match, with Gaborone appearing to carry out activities associated with witchcraft-related practices without hesitation.
They did so during the first leg in Botswana and repeated the acts at Azam Complex when they held their final training session, as well as yesterday before the match.
Gaborone also proved to be a technically strong team capable of playing different styles of football. In the previous match, they sat deep and defended in numbers, but yesterday they chose to open up, particularly in the second half, and gave Yanga a serious challenge.
Indeed, it was a match worthy of the group stage, which unfortunately was played at the preliminary stage.
