Bafana Bafana and Czechia will both look to bounce back from disappointing defeats in their FIFA World Cup Group A opening fixtures when they clash on Thursday in Atlanta.
Hugo Broos' side saw Sphephelo Sithole and Themba Zwane sent off as they lost 2-0 to Mexico, who had César Montes red-carded in second half stoppage time in Mexico City.
Julián Quiñones opened the scoring in the ninth minute and after several opportunities to double that lead went to waste, Mexico eventually scored again through Raúl Jiménez in the 67th minute.
Ladislav Krejčí opened the scoring for Czechia against South Korea in Zapopan shortly before the hour-mark. However, a drab overall performance from Repre (the Czechia national team's nickname) ultimately resulted in defeat. Hong Myungbo's men rallied back through goals from Hwang In-beom and Oh Hyeon-gyu to win 2-1.
Bafana Bafana saw 39% of the possession against Mexico and Czechia 38% against South Korea. Both teams set up to play pragmatic, defensive-minded football.
The key tactical question for Hugo Broos and Miroslav Koubek to answer is whether or not this is the moment to roll the dice and set up their teams to inflict damage on the opponents first and foremost, rather than plotting to absorb potential threats and wait for mistakes.
Broos shocked South Africans by setting up with a 5-3-2 against Mexico and leaving his two most enterprising ball-carrying attacking players -- Relebohile Mofokeng and Oswin Appollis -- on the bench.
Appollis had a brief cameo late in, while his Orlando Pirates teammate, Mofokeng, was a late substitute.
Bafana Bafana have precious few players who can match the physicality of Czechia, but on their day, they have players who can produce wizardry on the ball to unlock the sternest of defences.
Key details
Date: Thursday, June 18 at 6 p.m. CAT (12 p.m. local time in Atlanta, 4 p.m. GMT, 5 p.m. BST)
Venue: Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta
How to watch: The match is scheduled to air on SuperSport's channels 201, 202, 235 and 490 in South Africa. FOX holds English-language broadcast rights in the USA, while the BBC will broadcast this match in the UK and it will be available on their platforms, including iPlayer and BBC Sport.
Team news
Sithole and Zwane are both suspended for this match following their red cards in the tournament opener against Mexico. By default, they will each serve one-match suspensions and return for Bafana Bafana's final group stage game against South Korea.
Expected lineups
Czechia
GK Matěj Kovář
LWB Jaroslav Zelený | CB Ladislav Krejčí | CB Robin Hranáč | CB Štěpán Chaloupek | RWB Vladimír Coufal
CM Alexandr Sojka | CM Tomáš Souček
LW Pavel Šulc | ST Patrik Schick | RW Lukáš Provod
South Africa
LB Aubrey Modiba | CB Mbekezeli Mbokazi | CB Ime Okon | RB Khuliso Mudau
CM Jayden Adams | CM Teboho Mokoena
LW Oswin Appollis | AM Relebohile Mofokeng | RW Kamogelo Sebelebele
ST Lyle Foster
Stats
South Africa have only met Czechia once before, drawing 2-2 in the 1997 FIFA Confederations Cup. Their current assistant coach, Helman Mkhalele, scored a late equaliser.
South Africa completed only one successful dribble in their opener against Mexico (recorded by Jayden Adams).
