South Sudan and Mali will lock horns in their second Africa Cup of Nations qualifier on Thursday at the St. Mary's Stadium-Kitende.
The away side are looking to pick up a second straight victory following an emphatic win last time out, while the hosts go in search of a quick response having lost their opening fixture.
Match preview
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Mali claimed a resounding 4-0 triumph over Congo at Stade du 26 Mars on Saturday to kick off their AFCON qualifying journey on a positive note.
Mohamed Magassouba's men got the job done inside the opening 45 minutes as an El Bilal Toure brace sandwiched in between strikes from Mohamed Camara and Kalifa Coulibaly effectively ended the game before half time.
Les Aigles have now snapped a three-match winless streak in grand style and will be looking to pick up where they left off in Bamako.
Next up is a clash versus an opposing side who have lost each of the previous four encounters between the teams by a combined score of 11-0.
Unbeaten in eight of their last 12 games away from home excluding major tournaments, Thursday's visitors will back themselves to come out on top and continue their already-established dominance in this fixture.
South Sudan fell to a narrow 1-0 defeat against The Scorpions of Gambia in Saturday's Group G meeting at the Stade Lat Dior.
The game was decided in the fourth minute of first-half stoppage time as Ablie Jallow opened the scoring to put Stefano Cusin's men to the sword.
Consequently, the Bright Stars have now lost each five of their last seven outings since March 2021. with the only wins in that time coming in the preliminary qualifying round of the AFCON against Djibouti.
Already left with some catching up to do, Thursday's visitors will need to come away with all three points in this one to get their qualification journey up and running.
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Team News
Mali's Ibrahima Kone is a major doubt for this one after he was forced off with an injury in the first half of his side's most recent outing.
Kalifa Coulibaly came off the bench for Kone to good effect in the aforementioned game, and the forward is expected to be named in the starting XI for this one.
Since recovering from a lengthy injury layoff, El Bilal Toure has scored three times in five starts for club and country, making him one to keep an eye on.
Peter Makoi's availability for South Sudan currently hangs in the balance as he lasted only 36 minutes during his side's defeat to Gambia.
Nineteen-year-old Joseph Malish is on hand to take Makoi's place in the lineup should the latter be deemed unfit to participate.
South Sudan possible starting lineup:
Mayik; Adebo, Manyang, Toha, Lokosang; Gama, Malish, Chol; Okello, Majek, Yuel
Mali possible starting lineup:
Diawara; Dante, Fofana, Kouyate, Traore; Samassekou, Camara; Dieng, Bissouma, Toure; Coulibaly
We say: South Sudan 1-3 Mali
Off the back of a resounding victory last time out, Mali will head into this one full of confidence. The away side also boast a significantly better squad than their hosts, and we are backing them to claim all three points.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Top tip
Adepoju Marvellous
