You can expect one of the fiercest battles when South Africa take on Senegal in a 2018 Fifa World Cup qualifier at Peter Mokaba Stadium, in Polokwane on Friday (7pm).

This is an all-or-nothing clash for Bafana Bafana who are bottom with four points. A win will elevate the side to seven points and a draw or a loss will end the nation's hopes of qualifying.

Senegal lead Group D with eight points and if Bafana win, they could take this down to the wire when the two nations meet again in Dakar three days later.

Qualifying is easier said than done, though. Bafana are left to pick up the pieces following their two defeats to Cape Verde Islands. A 3-1 home win against Burkina Faso has given the nation some hope.

There's a good reason why Senegal are leading the pack and Bafana coach Stuart Baxter said his charges will have to play smart against the West Africans.

"We will have to pick our way through them; they have some fine defenders and have some midfielders that can press the ball and they have front players who can do stuff on their own," Baxter noted.

"Our movement has to move their defenders around. to unbalance them will be really, really important."

With that said, the Briton explained why he picked more than 10 midfielders and only three strikers. It offers a glimpse into how he plans to approach the match.

"In a bigger picture, the way I see good South African football being played, with a lot of movement. If we play with four strikers, it sounds very offensive, but they will stand there and get picked up [by the opposition defenders]. I think people running from midfield is a weapon that we have in South Africa," he explained.

Bafana assemble today for camp and depart for Polokwane tomorrow to kick-start their preparations.

The home side will look to the likes of Percy Tau to open the visitors' defenders, but Bafana's back four will also have their hands full with Liverpool's Sadio Man�.