By 
By Sibusiso Masilela
Sihlangu head coach Dominic Kunene says they were unlucky during the 2026 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers opener against Libya. This comes after watching his troops suffer a 1-0 defeat to the ‘Mediterranean Knights’ at Mbombela Stadium.
“We played well, and we were unlucky to lose despite dominating both halves. We need to work on our finishing. I will sit down with my technical team and analyze the game ahead of the second match,” he said. Meanwhile, the winning coach Milutin Sredojević was full of praise for the local side despite their slender win.
“We started with a cautious approach as we knew that they would come at us. We made changes in the second half which paid off as we were able to finish them. Eswatini has a good team and a competitive side that will cause more problems for other countries. I wish them the best of luck against Cape Verde during their next match,” he said. An Ahmed Ekkwara second-half goal gave the North African a slender win over the nation’s pride during the Group D opener.
