South Africa beat Angola and reached the COSAFA U-20 semifinals — TimesLIVE
South Africa’s under-20 football team defeated Angola 2-0 in Maputo, Mozambique, and reached the semifinals of the 2026 COSAFA youth championship. Raymond Mdaka’s team collected six points from two Group B matches.
Goals before the break
South African captain Lazola Maku opened the scoring in the 14th minute. In the 41st minute, Kaizer Chiefs midfielder Steven Mendes headed in a goal to double his national team’s advantage.
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The goal was Mendes’ third in two tournament matches: he scored a brace in South Africa’s opening 3-0 win over Lesotho. In the second half, the South Africans withstood pressure from their opponents and kept a clean sheet.
Battle for an Africa Cup place
As TimesLIVE reports, South Africa will play Eswatini in their final group-stage match. Before facing the South African team, Angola defeated Eswatini 4-0. The COSAFA U-20 tournament is a qualifying competition for the Africa U-20 Cup of Nations: the two finalist teams will earn places at the continental championship, which will take place next year in Ghana.
