Seeking to bounce back from a defeat last time out and get their World Cup qualifying campaign up and running, Togo play host to Namibia at Stade de Kegue on Sunday.
The visitors were held to a stalemate in their opening qualifier and are also in search of all three points to put some early daylight between themselves and their hosts.
Match preview
© Reuters
Togo had nothing to show for a highly spirited display versus Senegal at the Stade Lat Dior on Wednesday when they fell to a 2-0 defeat away from home.
Following a relatively uneventful opening 45 minutes, second-half goals from Abdou Diallo and Sadio Mane put Claude Le Roy's men to the sword.
Les Eperviers, who are looking to qualify for the World Cup for only the second time in history, have started their journey on the back foot, but there is still enough time to recover.
The West Africans' next task sees them go up against Namibia for the first time ever, which should make for an enthralling affair in Lome.
Having netted in each of their last five home matches, Sunday's hosts know that keeping it tight at the other end will play a big part in determining the outcome of this one.
Namibia played out a 1-1 draw versus Congo Republic at the Independence Stadium on Thursday to kick off their World Cup qualifying bid.
Charles Hambira had an emotional rollercoaster in Windhoek as he gave his side a first-half advantage, before restoring parity in the second period with an own goal.
Ricardo Mannetti's men have lost just one of their last eight outings across all competitions which was a 1-0 defeat to Mozambique in the COSAFA Cup.
After finishing bottom of their qualification group in both 2010 and 2014, early signs indicate that the Brave Warriors are set for a more productive campaign this time around.
- L
- L
- D
- L
- W
- L
- L
- D
- W
- W
- W
- D
- L
- D
Team News
Despite a decent performance against more illustrious opponents last time out, Claude Le Roy might contemplate making his some changes to his starting XI.
The likes of Marouf Tchakei and Kevin Denkey could be given the nod right from the off weekend having come on as second-half substitutes versus Senegal.
Denzil Haoseb is now the second-most capped Namibian player of all time and is closing in on Petrus Shitembi who currently holds the record.
With seven goals in 15 games for the visitors since making his debut in 2019, 28-year-old Elmo Kambindu is one to keep an eye on this weekend.
Togo possible starting lineup:
Barcola; Nadjombe, Djene, Tchoutchoui, Agbozo; Olufade, Eninful, Aholou, Henen; Sunu, Doh Laba
Namibia possible starting lineup:
Kazapua; Hanamub, Gebhardt, Hambira, Kamberipa; Hotto, Hasoeb, Handura, Stephanus; Kamatuka, Shalulile
We say: Togo 1-0 Namibia
Both teams have reason to believe they can claim all three points in this one and that should lead to a keenly-contested affair. We expect a low-scoring clash with the home side just managing to come out on top at the end of the 90 minutes.
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 Namibia win with a probability of 38.16%. A win for Togo had a probability of 37.03% and a draw had a probability of 24.8%.
The most likely scoreline for a Namibia win was 1-2 with a probability of 8.46%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 0-1 (8.09%) and 0-2 (5.9%). The likeliest Togo win was 2-1 (8.31%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (11.59%). The actual scoreline of 0-1 was predicted with an 8.1% likelihood. Our data analysis correctly predicted that Namibia would win this match.
