Zimbabwe will be looking to start their 2022 World Cup qualifying campaign on a positive note when they welcome South Africa to the National Sports Stadium on Friday.
Meanwhile, the visitors will hope to end a 12-year wait for an appearance at the World Cup since becoming the first African nation to host the event back in 2010.
Match preview
South Africa made up for a disappointing AFCON qualifying campaign where they finished third by claiming the COSAFA Cup title on home turf back in July.
Hugo Broos's men, led by top scorer Sepana Letsoalo, swept all that was brought before them en route to a penalty shootout victory over Senegal in the final.
The Bafana Bafana now seek to reach the World Cup finals for the fourth time in their history with only five countries in the entire continent boasting a better record.
Their first task comes away at a Zimbabwe outfit who have come out on top in four of the last six meetings between the sides dating back to 2003.
However, Friday's visitors are on a seven-game unbeaten run, keeping clean sheets in six of those matches, and will be confident of getting a positive result.
In stark to contrast to their opponents, Zimbabwe secured qualification for next year's Africa Cup of Nations but endured a disappointing COSAFA Cup campaign.
Zdravko Logarusic's men failed to win any of their four group-stage fixtures at the tournament and finished bottom of the group as a result.
The Warriors, in search of an immediate redemption, will be looking to book their place at the World Cup finals for the first time ever.
Friday's hosts could certainly do with a positive start on home turf where they have failed to win any of their last three competitive outings.
- W
- L
- D
- D
- L
- L
- W
- W
- W
- D
- W
- W
Team News
The availability of Aston Villa midfielder Marvelous Nakamba is still uncertain as clubs in England are unwilling to release players to go for international duty due to a 10-day isolation period that needs to be observed upon their return.
Khama Billiat and Knowledge Musona have scored a combined 40 goals for Zimbabwe, and the duo will be heavily relied upon to provide firepower in attack.
Unsurprisingly, Sepana Letsoalo retains his place in his place in the visitors' squad off the back of four goals in his first four international outings.
Since his debut in 2017, no South African player has netted more times than Percy Tau, who is currently the eighth all-time highest goalscorer for his nation.
Zimbabwe possible starting lineup:
Mapisa; Bhasera, Mudimu, Zemura, Chimwemwe; Ncube, Sarupinda, Karuru; Rusike, Kadewere, Musona
South Africa possible starting lineup:
Williams; Mabiliso, Morena, De Reuck, Phete; Brooks, Mokoena, Mbule; Hlongwane, Letsoalo, Tau
We say: Zimbabwe 0-1 South Africa
The hosts have found it difficult to get going on home turf of late, which is something that the visitors will aim to take advantage of.
We anticipate a cagey and nervy affair in this one, with the away side coming out on top by the only goal of the game.
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 Zimbabwe win with a probability of 36.52%. A win for South Africa had a probability of 35.85% and a draw had a probability of 27.6%.
The most likely scoreline for a Zimbabwe win was 1-0 with a probability of 10.91%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-1 (7.89%) and 2-0 (6.6%). The likeliest South Africa win was 0-1 (10.79%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (13.05%). The actual scoreline of 0-0 was predicted with a 9% likelihood.
