Mauritius vs Lesotho Prediction: Lesotho to extend dominance on Mauritius

Friday's match at the King Zwelithini Stadium will mark the beginning of the 2023 COSAFA Cup campaign for both Mauritius and Lesotho. The national teams of both countries are not in very good form, but the Mauritius side won their most recent encounter; nonetheless, the Lesotho side has been having a lot of trouble recently, as they have not won any of their last six matches.

The previous month saw Mauritius defeat Kenya 1-0 in a friendly match, and they bring that momentum into this game with them. The goal scored by Kengy Saramandif in the 22nd minute was a big factor in the Dodos' victory. On the other hand, before that victory, Mauritius had lost three consecutive matches, two of which were played against Angola at the African Nations Championship, while the other was played against Djibouti during an international friendly. In a friendly international competition, they did very well to defeat Pakistan with three goals, as Pakistan was unable to score any goals. In spite of the fact that the Dodos have never managed to pull off a victory against Lesotho in any of their three previous encounters, it is anticipated that this team will give this match their utmost attention and look forward to ending their winless streak.

Lesotho lost to Comoros at home by a score of 1-0 in a qualifying match for the Africa Cup of Nations one month ago. At the very last second of regulation time, Youssouf M'bongama scored the game-winning goal for the away team. However, it is important to highlight the fact that Lesotho have already lost five of their past six matches, with their best result in that run being a draw against Malawi. In fact, the Crocodiles have not been victorious in a single one of their matches so far this year. The last time Lesotho picked up a win was against Mauritius in July 2022.

The two teams last competed against one another in the COSAFA Cup in 2022, where Lesotho emerged victorious with a 2-1 score. In five of the past six games that Mauritius has played, there have been fewer than three goals scored. The past six games Lesotho has played have resulted in fewer than three goals being scored. The current winless streak for Lesotho is six games, during which they have been defeated five times and have lost their last four games in a row. In their last seven COSAFA Cup matches, Mauritius has not been victorious in any of them, instead suffering six defeats. In four of their most recent six matches, Lesotho has given up two goals or more to their opponents.

Despite the fact that they are not among the teams with the best chances of winning the COSAFA Cup trophy, Lesotho and Mauritius will work hard to get their tournaments off to a good start. Lesotho has been having a tough time over the past few months, and they are currently winless in their previous six games. In spite of their recent lackluster performance, they are still the favorites to win this match, and a victory would put them in a strong position to go to the knockout stages of the competition. Mauritius, for their part, has had a difficult time competing in the COSAFA Cup. In fact, they have not won any of their last seven matches in the competition. The games that involve the two teams typically have a low total number of points scored, and this pattern may persist. My prediction is that Lesotho will win by a single goal and keep a clean sheet in this match.