TotalEnergies U17 AFCON: Bittersweet moment for Mabena with MOTM award
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South Africa’s wonderkid Siyabonga Mabena said it was a bittersweet moment for him being named man of the match in a duel that his side lost.
Mabena won the player of the match award despite the Amajimbos losing 3-2 to Nigeria in their final Group B clash of the TotalEnergies U17 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Constantine on Saturday.
He scored the second goal, a piece of individual magic, but it was not enough to see South Africa win the match.
“I am happy to be named man of the match but as a team, this is not the result we wanted. We really wanted to win this match to qualify for the next round,” Mabena said.
He added; “In the first half, we should have taken advantage of Nigeria because they were pressing high and leaving spaces behind. We should have utilized them and scored to win.”
Mabena, who turns out for Champions Mamelodi Sundowns, last year became the youngest ever player to play in the South African PSL and he believes the chance to play at the U17 AFCON has further enabled him to learn and grow as a player.
“Definitely I have improved in the matches I have played and I have learnt a lot. At this level, there is no shortcut to success and you need to work hard. It is not easy. As a team we have picked a lot of positives and a lot of experience,” Mabena said.
He now hopes, whatever the outcome of their possibility to make the quarter finals of the tournament, the team should be kept together and is the future of South African football.
“Hopefully we can grow together as a team. We have a very good team and I know we can win some more tournaments. In future we can qualify for something. Maybe not the U17 World Cup but even the U20 and the U23, we have a chance as a team to make something special,” Mabena noted.
South Africa will watch with bated breath the final Group C match between Cameroon and Burkina Faso, hoping for a favorable result to sneak them into the quarter finals.
