Several spots in the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) will be up for grabs on Saturday 17 June afternoon, with potentially a bit of history involved too.Seven matches are lined up in different stadiums across the continent.Zambia vs Ivory Coast.At the Levy Mwanawasa Stadium in Ndola, Zambia will hope to book a ticket to the continental showpiece as they play host to already qualified Ivory Coast in a 1600 EAT kickoff.Take a look at the #TotalEnergiesAFCONQ2023 round 5 games 🍿Which game are you most looking forward to? 🤔 pic.twitter.com/qYSPtbNVc7— CAF (@CAF_Online) June 14, 2023 Avram Grant’s side are second in Group H with nine points from their four matches played and having secured back-to-back wins over Lesotho (home and away) in the March qualifiers. A win will see Zambia eclipse the total points third-placed Comoros would amass should they register a win on the road against Lesotho.The Copper Bullets last appeared at AFCON 2015, when they bowed out at the group stages after failing to win any of their three games in Equatorial Guinea.They were crowned champions for the first time in 2012 after falling at the final hurdle on two previous occasions in 1974 and 1994.##NAJAVA_MECA_7324411##Central Africa Republic vs Angola.And now to potentially some piece of the aforementioned history.Dubbed the African Wild Beasts, CAR at the Stade de la Reunification Stadium in Cameroon will seek to punch a ticket to the Africa Cup of Nations for the first time in history as they play Angola in a key Group E match up from 1600 EAT.Having secured back to back wins over Madagascar in the March qualifiers, a win over third placed Angola will present Les Fauves a chance to qualify for the showpiece with top side Ghana, but will come with some effort.Angola are unbeaten in their last four home matches including back to back wins and head coach Pedro Goncalves believes they will stop at nothing but a win, being just two points behind CAR.“It’s an important game for our journey and for us to base all our growth, in the face of a set of adversities that have occurred to us and often do not reach general knowledge,” Goncalves said. “We always try to have positive thinking and find solutions. We have to guarantee our qualification with a victory, because, in the end, we want to be in the AFCON finals. There is already a strategic plan for the game.”Botswana vs Libya.At the Obed Itani Chilume Stadium in Francistown on Saturday, hosts Botswana will look to puncture any air that Libya have in regards to qualifying for the AFCON tournament having seen their chances fade with three consecutive defeats and one draw.𝐒𝐏𝐎𝐑𝐓𝐘 𝐅𝐑𝐈𝐃𝐀𝐘𝗧𝗼𝘁𝗮𝗹𝗘𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗴𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗔𝗙𝗖𝗢𝗡 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟯 𝗤𝗨𝗔𝗟𝗜𝗙𝗜𝗘𝗥𝗦 𝗔𝗚𝗔𝗜𝗡𝗦𝗧 𝗟𝗜𝗕𝗬𝗔On Saturday 17th June 2023, Botswana National football team will court Libya on the TotalEnergies 2023 Afcon qualifiers, Obert Itani Chilume Stadium Francistown pic.twitter.com/MD2j5UV57e— Ministry of Youth, Gender, Sport and Culture (@myscbw) June 16, 2023 Libya, on the other hand, are winless in their last three matches in Group J having registered three successive defeats, but a win could see them fall just three points behind Equatorial Guinea who play Tunisia later in the evening.“The average age in the squad is 26 years. We need to play more games to gain experience,” Ditlhokwe – Botswana skipper told Mmegi on Friday. “We will approach the last two matches with a higher level of seriousness and commitment. The boys have to get used to the intensity of playing international matches if we want to go far as a nation.” South Africa vs Morocco.A high profile match with little to play for.That will be the feeling at the FNB Stadium on Saturday as the two giants – who have already qualified for the AFCON tournament clash in an 1800 EAT kickoff.MATCHDAY‼️ BAFANA BAFANA VS MOROCCO Venue : FNB stadiumTime : 17:00 Do you think bafana bafana can upset the FIFA World Cup Semifinalists? Tell us what you think#football #Verified #bafanabafana #TotalEnergiesAFCONQ2023 #SouthAfrica #AFCONQ2023 pic.twitter.com/GIngHT5yNR— FootballVerifed (@VerifedFootball) June 17, 2023 Under head coach Hugo Broos, the game will provide opportunity for Bafana Bafana – who are making a return to the AFCON since 2019 – a chance to win back home support saying; “We have been playing in front of empty stadiums for the last two years and you need the public for an opponent like Morocco. Secondly, we have to win back the public with a good performance. Bafana Bafana is not popular in South Africa and maybe tomorrow is the best opportunity to win back the public and play well in front of our supporters.”Walid Regragui’s men kicked off their quest for a place in Ivory Coast with a 2-1 home victory over South Africa last June, four days before edging out Liberia 2-0 at the Stade Mohammed V.Morocco is the team to beat in Africa – Regragui“Everyone wants to beat Morocco now. The team has done well over the last few years and what I have also learned is that every team wants to beat us, which makes it more difficult for us to win. This also helps us to improve so we welcome it” Regragui, a former Wydad Casablanca coach, said on Friday.
