Mvala injury has Bafana coach Broos worried
Mamelodi Sundowns defender Mothobi Mvala is a serious doubt for the Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) with a groin injury, while Ronwen Williams and Themba Zwane have been ruled out of the warm-up match against Lesotho on Wednesday.
Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos said on Tuesday he is waiting for a medical report on the severity of Mvala’s injury, which will decide whether he goes to the Ivory Coast.
When he announced his final squad for the tournament, Broos included Tapelo Xoki as one of the three players on standby, and the Orlando Pirates defender may be roped in if Mvala does not respond to treatment.
“The biggest problem for us is Mothobi — he has a groin injury,” said Broos. “The doctor is with him and we will wait for the medical report. We are not sure he will go with us to Ivory Coast.
“We can’t take him with us if he can’t train for the next 10 days. In that case it will be better to take someone else. I really hope it is not so bad and with a few days rest I can count on him for our opening match against Mali next Tuesday.”
Broos said it will be a blow if Myala doesn’t make it to the tournament.
“It can’t make me happy when a guy like Mothobi is out of the team. When Mothobi plays he gives 100% and when he trains he gives 150%. He is a guy you can always count on and in a tournament like Afcon these types … are very important.”
About Williams and Zwane, Broos said they will be rested for the preparation match against Lesotho, which will be played behind closed doors, and they
will be ready for the Afcon opener against Mali.
“The small problem is Ronwen Williams, who didn’t train with us for the past four days, but the medical report is positive. He will not play against Lesotho but will be ready for next Tuesday and there is no doubt about that.
“The second small problem is Themba Zwane. He got a kick at training. He wanted to train on Tuesday but it was better not to. There will be no problem for him next week but he is out of the Lesotho game.”
Reflecting on the four-day camp in Stellenbosch, Broos said they ticked most of the preparation boxes.
“I can be happy with what happened over the past four days in our camp in Stellenbosch. I saw a group of players who are motivated and the intensity of the training was very good.”
Broos said the result against Lesotho is not important for him. “For me it is not even a friendly game, it is a preparation game. This is a game to prepare for what will follow next week.
“Even in the worst-case scenario that we lose the game, for me it will not be the moment to doubt or criticise because I know what we did over the past four days in Stellenbosch.”