Modiba’s defensive nous, reliability finally get him noticed by Mashaba

THE spin-off of the formation of Cape Town City continues to have advantages for the Mother City.

With the PSL on a two-week international break, the focus is on Bafana Bafana’s two upcoming fixtures – against Mauritania and Egypt. From a Cape perspective, Ajax Cape Town’s Rivaldo Coetzee (chicken pox) and Prince Nxumalo (hamstring injury) have been withdrawn, but City have the brilliant Aubrey Modiba in the squad – and the 21-year-old talent has a great opportunity to maintain the sensational progress he has made over the last 10 months.

Bafana take on Mauritania in a 2017 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier at the Mbombela Stadium in Nelspruit on Friday (kickoff 7.05pm). Then, next Tuesday, the SA national football side faces Egypt in the 22nd edition of the Nelson Mandela Challenge. This international friendly is scheduled for the Orlando Stadium in Soweto (kickoff 7.05pm).

With Friday’s match being a dead-rubber, as Bafana are out of the running for a place at Gabon in 2017, head coach Shakes Mashaba clearly has his sights on the 2018 World Cup qualifiers later this year. Hence, he has selected quite a few of the South African Under-23 players who did duty at the recent Rio Olympics, with City’s Modiba, pictured, among the contingent. Last season, under the tutelage of the wily Muhsin Ertugral, Modiba sprang to prominence at Mpumalanga Black Aces. As a reward for a wonderful campaign, he won the PSL’s Young Player of the Season award, got the trip of a lifetime to the Olympic Games and, now, he is in the Bafana squad.

Not only that, with Black Aces having morphed into City, Modiba has picked up where he left off. In the new club’s opening game, Modiba, playing at left-back, demonstrated some superb attacking intent on the overlap, while his display in the MTN8 quarter-final win over Kaizer Chiefs emphasised his defensive nous and reliability. It’s Modiba’s versatility that makes him such a special footballer. The U23s used the Polokwane-born lad as an attacker at the Olympics, he has been picked as a midfielder for Bafana and City coach Eric Tinkler uses the player as a left-back.

With Coetzee and Nxumalo sidelined over the next few days, Modiba has a chance to cement his growing acclaim as a player to follow in Cape Town.

Mashaba has still not named any replacements for Coetzee and Nxumalo, but it should be forthcoming soon. There may, in fact, be even more changes to the squad, given Mamelodi Sundowns coach Pitso Mosimane’s unhappiness that his players aren’t getting any rest. The Pretoria club has had a busy time of it of late and are currently in the semi-finals of the prestigious Caf Champions League (against Zambia’s Zesco United, with the first leg scheduled for the weekend of September 16 and the second leg a week later). In the Bafana squad, they have Tebogo Langerman, Thapelo Morena, Hlompho Kekana, Keagan Dolly and Sibusiso Vilakazi – and, with Afcon qualification not an issue, Mosimane wants Mashaba to see reason and allow the players a break.

While Mashaba wasn’t happy with the manner in which Mosimane made the point – on national television – the national coach did admit that he may be amenable to the request.

Meanwhile, Mashaba also expressed his delight that striker Tokelo Rantie had managed to secure a move away from Bournemouth in England, as the player would now have an opportunity for more regular football. Rantie last week signed for Genclerbirligi in Turkey.

“We are happy that Rantie has a new club,” said Mashaba. “He’ll get game time where he’s going – and that can only be good for us.”