South Africa will look to continue their impressive World Cup 2022 Qualifying campaign on Tuesday, when they play host to Ethiopia after the sides met on Saturday.
Bafana Bafana earned a 3-1 away victory over Tuesday's opponents last time out to move onto seven points from three group games, leaving Ethiopia on just three points.
Match preview
After a frustrating goalless draw away at Zimbabwe in the group opener, South Africa quickly kickstarted their qualifying campaign with back-to-back wins.
Hugo Broos's men started with a hard-fought 1-0 home win over Ghana, as Bongokuhle Hlongwane netted the only goal in the 83rd minute.
They made it two straight wins with a 3-1 victory over Tuesday's opponents last time out, as Teboho Mokoena, Mothobi Mvala and Evidence Makgopa all got on the scoresheet in an impressive away performance.
Having missed out on the last two tournaments, Bafana Bafana will now be desperate to book their place in next year's World Cup, with another victory on Tuesday further strengthening their position in the group.
They meet an Ethiopia side who will see a victory as necessary if they are to stand any chance of topping the group.
Wubetu Abate's men were handed a difficult start to the group, as they made the trip to Ghana and were handed a narrow 1-0 defeat.
They quickly bounced back though, as a 94th-minute penalty converted by Aschalew Tamene made the difference in a 1-0 victory over Zimbabwe.
The Walia Ibex were brought crashing back down on Saturday, as Getaneh Kebede's equaliser was overshadowed at home to South Africa, with Abate's side now having a chance to quickly exact revenge on their opponents.
With four points separating the nations and only one team progressing from the group to next year's tournament, they will know that Tuesday is a must-win game if they are to stand a chance of overcoming the odds and reaching their first World Cup.
- D
- W
- W
- D
- W
- W
- D
- W
- W
- L
- W
- L
- L
- D
- W
- L
- W
- L
Team News
After a strong showing in the reverse fixture, South Africa are unlikely to make major changes for Tuesday's clash.
Mothobi Mvala and Teboho Mokoena will continue to feature in the engine room, while forward Evidence Makgopa will be hopeful of earning a starting place after scoring their third goal off the bench last time out.
Mamelodi Sundowns defender Rushine De Reuck will continue to general the back line, having quickly established himself in the national team.
Ethiopia may also be wary of making too many alterations, given they have navigated through several tough clashes and are yet to suffer a thrashing.
They will remain without midfielder Shimeket Gugesa, who was ruled out of both clashes with South Africa through injury and has since left the camp.
Getaneh Kebede will continue to lead the line after finding the net in the previous fixture on Saturday.
South Africa possible starting lineup:
Williams; Mobbie, De Reuck, Xulu, Blom; Mokoena, Mvala, Brooks; Letsoalo, Hlongwane, Makgopa
Ethiopia possible starting lineup:
F Gebremichael; Tunjo, Tamene, Bayeh, Yesuf; Dagnachew, Bekele, Endashaw; A Gebremichael, Kebede, Nassir
We say: South Africa 3-0 Ethiopia
While the previous meeting was relatively close until South Africa doubled their lead in injury time, we see Bafana Bafana cruising to a more comfortable victory with home advantage.
The hosts boast more quality than their opponents and have demonstrated impressive defensive solidity so far, potentially helping them to another important win in their bid to reach the World Cup.
Top tip
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a South Africa win with a probability of 55.74%. A draw had a probability of 26.3% and a win for Ethiopia had a probability of 17.99%.
The most likely scoreline for a South Africa win was 1-0 with a probability of 16.34%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-0 (12.19%) and 2-1 (8.77%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (11.75%), while for a Ethiopia win it was 0-1 (7.88%). The actual scoreline of 1-0 was predicted with a 16.3% likelihood. Our data analysis correctly predicted a 1-0 win for South Africa in this match.
