Ntseki’s selection ‘headache’
Bafana coach hopeful of topping Afcon qualifying group
BAFANA Bafana have an abundance of talent to choose from, so much that it may be difficult for coach Molefi Ntseki to decide who to select or who to leave out when South Africa square off against Sao Tome and Principe next month in back to back Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) qualifiers.
Seasoned campaigners like Lebogang Manyama, Andile Jali and Bongi Ntuli have been on top of their games at club level. Ntseki admitted he is facing a selection dilemma.
“We should all agree that we’ve got talented players in this country. The most important thing for me is the right attitude,” warned Ntseki.
Bafana are second in their group with three points after two games. They lost 2-0 to Ghana and won 1-0 against Sudan.
“At international level, you should have fighters. You should have people who will die for the jersey. Talent alone is not enough. I’ve seen it when we played against the likes of Nigeria, Egypt and Ghana. You need soldiers, you need players who can go out there and work very hard. Something very interesting lately, I would say, all the players are raising their hands to say I must also be counted which is a healthy headache for us if we are to go into the selection,” he added.
Six points against Sao Tome will put Bafana in the pound seats of the qualification for the Africa Cup of
Nations (Afcon) in Cameroon in 2020.
“The selection will be mainly based on information on the opposition, what approach we are going to use in the two matches home and away against Sao Tome. We are careful because of the mentality that we tend to adopt when we play against the so-called smaller football countries.”
In the past, Bafana have choked against the minnows.
“We can easily remember what happened when we played against Seychelles at FNB Stadium and what happened when we played them in Seychelles. The two points we lost in Seychelles really made life very difficult for us going into the last game against Libya. We are very careful and cautious about Sao Tome. Let us get maximum points in both matches so that when we play Ghana and Sudan we will only be looking for a minimum number of points to qualify.”
The Bafana coach is still optimistic of finishing ahead of leaders Black Stars in their group.
“Our aim is to win the group. Winning the group will definitely help in terms of Caf and Fifa rankings.”