Bafana quiet on need to redeem themselves
Burkina Faso coach puzzled by Bafana’s inability to qualify
THREE days of interviews and training sessions and we are yet to hear the rallying cry from Bafana Bafana players ready to redeem the jersey after the two pathetic displays against Cape Verde.
Perhaps the Bafana players‚ like Donald Trump‚ are living in a bubble of their own reality‚ unaware of the hostile backlash to their perceived lack of care for what those defeats might have cost in any chance of a revival in South African football.
As the South Africans have trained this week for their now must-win 2018 World Cup qualifier against Burkina Faso at the FNB Stadium in Johannesburg on Saturday‚ any emphasis on a rally to redeem themselves has been conspicuously muted.
This even in the face of the battering they have received in the press‚ on radio‚ on Twitter‚ and anywhere else.
At least Bafana looked a little cheerier yesterday morning at FNB‚ after an apparently subdued morning session on Tuesday that may or may not have been the result of a tongue-lashing from coach Stuart Baxter.
But‚ presented with the woeful ticket sales‚ the public anger at Bafana spurning a lead in Group D with the defeats against Cape Verde and the need for redemption‚ left-back Sifiso Hlanti’s stock responses inspired little confidence.
“I think the most important thing for us as players after what happened in the previous games is that Saturday’s game is a must-win for us‚” Hlanti said.
“Because at the end of the day‚ whatever we do as players‚ it’s something that we want as players.
“We need to be positive and redeem ourselves. And the way to do that is to collect three points.”
Hlanti was asked directly about the 300 tickets sold by Tuesday‚ and how much that bothered him.
“I won’t say much. But I think that the most important thing for us as players is to go out here [at FNB] and do our best.
“Even if the supporters are not here‚ ultimately it’s about us‚ because we need to play. And we can’t run away from that.”
The SA media have gained from the Burkina Faso players that the West Africans‚ with the prospect of a first-ever World Cup in their sights and knowledge of what that could mean for their country‚ are notably keyed up.
Fifa has ordered the replay of the World Cup qualifier between South Africa and Senegal be played on November 10.
It will be followed on November 14 by a second meeting between the two countries in Dakar‚ as per the original fixtures‚ which will conclude the qualifying campaign for Russia 2018 for both countries.
South Africa host the November 10 game after the original result from November’s match in Polokwane was declared void when the referee Joseph Lamptey was found guilty of match manipulation.
BURKINA Faso coach Paulo Duarte has many reasons for being mystified as to why Bafana Bafana‚ his side’s opponents in Saturday’s World Cup qualifier at the FNB Stadium in Johannesburg‚ cannot qualify more often for major tournaments. In fact, he has four of them. That is the number of games where Duarte has faced South African teams and not won‚ losing three.
Duarte has met Bafana twice‚ in a 3-0 friendly defeat to Pitso Mosimane’s team at Ellis Park in 2011‚ and then in the 1-1 draw to Shakes Mashaba’s side in Ouagadougou in these Russia 2018 qualifiers in October last year. He was also coach of Tunisia’s CS Sfaxien side who lost 1-0 at home and 2-0 away in the group stage of the 2015 Caf Confederation Cup against Eric Tinkler’s eventual finalists, Orlando Pirates.
All those experiences have left 48-year-old Portuguese Duarte baffled as to the reason for Bafana not performing better.
“I say all the time that I don’t understand why South Africa do not have the results‚” the coach said.
“You have so many good players, but every time you don’t have qualification.
“If you ask me if the team today is better than five years ago I would tell you‚ ‘No’.
“But you have good players‚ good conditions‚ a good league.
“But also the reality is that you don’t have good results.”
Duarte arrived early in South Africa for a qualifier that‚ if Burkina can win‚ could leave his side in the driving seat in a Group D of swinging fortunes.
He watched SuperSport United’s Confed Cup semifinal first leg 1-1 draw against Tunisia’s Club Africain in Atteridgeville on Sunday.
SuperSport‚ the recent club of Bafana coach Stuart Baxter‚ have a number of players in the national squad.
Burkina Faso and Cape Verde‚ on four games each‚ have six points in Group D‚ while‚ having played three games each‚ Senegal have five and South Africa one.
Bafana need to win their remaining three games to stand a chance of qualifying. Meanwhile, Nigeria, Egypt and Tunisia could all book their spots at next year’s World Cup in the penultimate round of African qualifiers at the weekend, but the other two slots will only be decided next month.
A home victory over Zambia – a side they beat away at the start of the group phase – will be enough to see Nigeria return to the finals after reaching the second round in Brazil in 2014.
Last month’s convincing 4-0 win over Cameroon, inspired by the return of Victor Moses, saw them eliminate the reigning African champions and establish a three-point advantage, with two games to play, at the head of Group B. “We must wrap this race up on Saturday.
“Our team has shown professionalism, dedication and determination to be in this position,” captain John Obi Mikel said in the build-up to the match in Uyo.
Zambia’s young side upset Algeria away in their last game to stay in the race and give themselves hope of an unlikely turnaround after picking up a solitary point from their opening two matches.
Egypt play on Sunday against Congo in Alexandria in a match expected to produce a routine win and which follows 24 hours after their two rivals in Group E – Uganda and Ghana – go head to head in Kampala. Uganda are two points behind Egypt and Ghana four points adrift of the group leaders, as they face missing out on the World Cup after appearing at the last three finals.
Tunisia’s three-point advantage over the Democratic Republic of Congo in Group A has also put them in a strong position to qualify.
Tunisia are away in Guinea while the Congolese take on Libya.
In Group C, the Ivory Coast have a narrow one-point advantage over Morocco, but have a tough match in Mali tomorrow. Morocco host Gabon on Saturday.