South Africa 1-1 Mali – 1-3 penalty shutouts
post game quotes:
Patrice Carteron, Mali coach
“The South African team was very tough to play against. As it happened against the DRC, we conceded an early goal. But my players showed high levels of concentrations and we were managed to come back.
The task was very difficult and the expectations were very high. We always play to win. What is coming in this competition we don’t know, but what we know is that we are going to the semi-finals. From there, we will dream from there.
Gordon Igesund, South Africa coach
“Today, we lost with pride, dignity and passion. As a coach, you can ask from your team so much, they gave their all today. If you lose, you want to lose with pride. We played well, but we didn’t score the goals, that is unfortunate We have proven that we can match anybody. We played a team that is ranked third in Africa and we matched them and dominated them. There had to be a loser today, it had to be us on penalties.
“This tournament has been fantastic. I think we have made huge strides. We got better and better as the tournament went on. The improvement we made are fantastic. This team has come a long way not only the way they play but also off the field.”
eydou Keita, Mali captain
“This victory means a lot to everyone in Mali. As you can see, I have the Mali flag wrapped around me – this is an emotional moment for me and this team. We did our job today as we were expected to do, we fought hard. Things were very difficult, we played the hosts and they were good going forward.
“I had to bring my own contribution but this was an effort by the whole team. Everyone had his contribution. Whatever happened in this game is now in the past, we have to move forward.”
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