Bafana door still open for Khune
THE Bafana Bafana door is still open for Kaizer Chiefs net-minder Itumeleng Khune.
Khune has been out of the picture in the Bafana setup for the past year because due to injury. Ronwen Williams and Darren Keet have been doing the business and South Africa’s co-number one goalies. The duo have performed the task with aplomb such that Khune will not just walk back into the starting line-up.
Bafana coach, Molefi Ntseki, however, has revealed that the door is not closed for Khune.
“I won’t say much on Itumeleng because he has just played one game. We hope that he will get more game time. Everything depends on the game plan when it comes to Kaizer Chiefs,” Ntseki explained in a recent interview.
Williams is set to continue to command a regular starting berth for Bafana when they face
Sao Tome and
Principe in back to back Africa
Cup of Nations
(Afcon) qualifiers home and away.
The 28-year-old has blossomed in his international career following a shaky start in the national team. His game is now on a new horizon. Williams is producing his superhuman efforts between the sticks for both club and country. He has kept the most clean sheets in the Absa Premiership in the current season. The SuperSport goal-minder is the reigning Premier Soccer League (PSL),
Goalkeeper of the Season.
“Every player is given a chance to play and we will always profile him like any other player in the league. Itumeleng played in the Nedbank Cup against a First Division team and today (Saturday), he was on the bench. We are looking at so many other players, not only Itumeleng,” said Ntseki.
Khune is one of the more experienced players with 89 senior national team caps to his name.
Khune has featured in two Afcons, a World Cup, the Fifa Confederation Cup and Olympic Games for his country. But he has played second fiddle to Nigerian Daniel Akpeyi since he returned from his injury.
Khune is expected to return between the sticks for Amakhosi when they lock horns with Highlands Park this weekend in the Nedbank Cup.
Akpeyi made a costly error last weekend in an Absa Premiership match against Maritzburg United at FNB Stadium. His blunder denied Amakhosi three points.
Khune will be looking to keep another clean sheet as he did against Royal Eagles in the first round of the Nedbank Cup when they square off against the Lions of the North.
“We will always give players opportunity if we think they can give us the quality that we need,” Ntseki elaborated.
Khune missed out on the last Afcon in Egypt last year because of an injury. Bafana have three points from two games in the current qualifiers for the next Afcon in Cameroon next year.
They got the better of Sudan and succumbed to a defeat at the expense of Ghana. Bafana will be out to collect six points against the unknown, Sao Tome next month.