Stuart Baxter’s men take on Libya in a Group E tie in Sfax, needing just a draw to qualify for the competition. Bafana missed out on the 2017 AFCON and are determined to qualify this time round.
The team left for Tunisia on Saturday and had their third training session on Wednesday.
“We are fully aware of what this match means to the players, the entire travelling delegation, the Association, the fans and the whole country, and we believe we have what it takes to ensure that we get the needed result, however, we urge all South Africans to rally behind the team this weekend for this all-important game,” Hlatshwayo told the SAFA website.
“We all know that Bafana Bafana is a team that can unite the nation and bring some positivity around the country – and that is why we need positive energies back home for us to do well against Libya.”
“Everyone is highly motivated in the camp and we know that we have a good chance of winning this encounter. We have conceded only one goal in five matches and haven’t lost a game in the qualifiers – which is an indication that we are doing something right, we just need to finish off what we started,”
Hlatshwayo stressed the importance of being organised at the back throughout the 90 minutes.
“We have to maintain our good form in defence, score the needed goals so they don’t even get a chance of coming back into the qualifiers – and, most importantly, stay focused the entire 90 minutes plus. The good thing is that qualification is in our hands, they need to win to overtake us, we have come too far to let it slip, hence the support from South Africans will be key.”