Congo v Libya – Do or Die

When Congo locks horns with Libya at Japoma Stadium in Douala, it’s a must win for both sides if they are to reach the quarterfinals of the ongoing Total African Nations Championship, Cameroon 2020.

A lone point for Congo, two for Libya and Niger and four for DR Congo kept all doors open in the tight Group B. A win for Congo Red Devils or Libya Mediterranean Knights means they are almost through to the next round, depending on what happens in Yaoundé between DR Congo and Niger in the simultaneous kickoff.

For Congo, they have not won any of their last four CHAN matches, a record coach Barthélémy Ngatsono hopes to put an end to on Monday.

“We are ready,” Ngatsono said before the decisive clash. “All the teams are still in the race. It is not easy, qyalifying will be decided on pitch”.

“The past match we scored but could not win. We will prepare well and try to play our game this time,” he added.

On the other side, and despite being without a win in their opening two games, 2014 champions Libya could qualify for CHAN quarterfinals for the third time in a row.

“We are in a position where we must win against Congo,” Libya coach Zoran Filipovic said. “Our ambition and motivation are to play our way. We are trying to come up with different strategies because we have changed some players. We will try to take the opportunities to put pressure on our opponents to try to score,” added the Croat.

This will be the third meeting between Congo and Libya in the Total African Nations Championship (CHAN). The previous two ended in a draw, 2-2 in the group stage in January 2014 and 1-1 in the quarterfinals in January 2018, with Libya winning 5-3 on penalties in the later.