Lesotho head coach Leslie Notsi says his team are determined to close their 2026 FIFA World Cup Qualifying campaign on a high when they face Zimbabwe in their final Group C match at the Peter Mokaba Stadium in Polokwane on Monday evening.
The Crocodiles (Likuena) were officially eliminated from contention after a 2–1 defeat to Nigeria at the same venue on Friday, despite having earlier received a lifeline when FIFA awarded them three points from their clash against South Africa.
With qualification now mathematically impossible, Notsi insists his side remain focused on ending the group positively.
“The big guns are now pushing each other, which we all expected,” said Notsi.
“But our focus is not on them. We want to finish this campaign on a positive note — get a decent result and secure more points for Lesotho. Tomorrow is another new day, and we’ll prepare well for Zimbabwe.”
Notsi also expressed pride in his squad’s progress throughout the campaign, particularly the integration of young players who have stepped up from the COSAFA Cup setup into the senior team.
“The future of Likuena looks bright. The youngsters we introduced during the COSAFA Cup have shown great promise,” he said.
“Even in crucial games, they’ve handled the pressure well. For us, that’s a big positive — it shows this team is in good hands moving forward.”
Reflecting on Friday’s defeat to Nigeria, Lesotho captain Sekhoane Moerane admitted it was a painful result, especially after his team matched the Super Eagles for long periods.
“It broke our hearts because we really believed we could get a draw against such a big side,” Moerane said.
“We pushed beyond our limits. You could see that when we took the game to them, they started cracking and sitting deeper. We just couldn’t take our chances.”
Lesotho will now turn their focus to Zimbabwe, aiming to end their campaign with a morale-boosting win and complete a double over the Warriors, having triumphed 2–0 in the reverse fixture last year.