It’s all to play for in AFCON qualifying Group C this weekend, with Sudan hosting South Africa at Al-Hilal Stadium on Sunday.
We just one game left to play, South Africa sit second in Group C – one point ahead of third-place Sudan.
A draw would be enough to see South Africa qualify on Sunday, but Sudan must win in order to advance.
Sudan secured a relatively comfortable 2-0 win over Sao Tome Principe on Wednesday, giving them a real chance of qualification.
Goals either side of half-time from Mohamed Abdel Raman Yousif and Saifeldin Malik Bakhit Maki gave Sudan the win in midweek.
Sudan have now won three of their five matches in Group C, scoring seven goals while conceding just three in the process.
Following clean-sheet wins over Ghana and Sao Tome Principe, Sudan head into Sunday’s clash on the back of consecutive shutouts.
Looking at the bigger picture, Sudan have only managed to win two of their last nine matches in all competitions, recording three draws and four defeats along the way.
On the flip side, South Africa were held to a 1-1 draw by Ghana on Thursday, despite recording nine shots to Ghana’s five.
Ajax’s Mohammed Kudus gave Ghana the lead just after half-time before Brighton’s Percy Tau equalized two minutes later.
South Africa are now unbeaten in their previous three matches, picking up two wins and a draw in that time.
It is also worth noting that South Africa have scored a combined total of seven goals across their last three outings.
Head-to-head: South Africa claimed a 1-0 victory over Sudan in the reverse fixture back in November 2019.
That means South Africa have won each of their previous three meetings with Sudan, scoring over 1.5 goals on two occasions.
Team news: Following a precious win in midweek, Sudan head coach Hubert Velud is likely to stick with the same starting XI on Sunday.
South Africa defender Andile Jali went off injured against Ghana on Thursday, so Ben Motshwari is likely to replace him on Sunday.
With a place in the Africa Cup of Nations on the line, this is destined to be a cagey match as both sides aim to avoid defeat.
Ultimately, Forebet predicts that South Africa will edge out Sudan, although a low-scoring match is on the cards.