Botswana in disarray for Bafana clash
BAFANA Bafana arrived in the Botswana capital city last night, having made a threehour coach trip from Phokeng, but if they thought they had had an exhausting, tumultuous week, it is nothing compared to what is happening in the opposition camp.
They arrived with a new coach in Steve Komphela, and while Botswana still have Stan Tshosane as their main man, they are likely to field a team bereft of experience in tomorrow’s World Cup qualifier.
The Zebras’ defeat to the Central African Republic last weekend was mainly due to the fact that Tshosane had to field an inexperienced, disgruntled team in Bangui, and that won’t change tomorrow as senior players declined call-ups in a long-running dispute with the Botswana FA.
They include Mogogi Gabonamong, the SuperSport United midfielder, who is part of a group fed-up with the BFA’s failure to pay bonuses promised after they qualified for their maiden African Nations Cup last year.
Hundreds of thousands of pula were apparently raised from the public as euphoria gripped the country, only for players to reveal months later that the funds never filtered through to their pockets amid accusations BFA head honchos can no longer account for them.
With this background, Bafana should enter the University Stadium as outright favourites tomorrow (3pm) in spite of arriving here after a week in which Komphela replaced Pitso Mosimane.
The South Africans drew with Ethiopia, placing them ahead of Botswana.
Most eyes will be fixed on Komphela’s team selection to see if there’s any change from Mosimane’s rigidity. There’s no question that there has to be if Bafana are to win for the first time since last August, with obvious changes, not least in midfield, needed to make the team spark.
Thanduyise Khuboni and Reneilwe Letsholonyane were exposed by the Ethiopians last week, and Komphela should look elsewhere to solidify that part of the field.
Thulani Serero returned to the camp this week following a bereavement, and he will be an attacking option.
“It was very tough losing my father,” the Ajax Amsterdam player said following training in Phokeng yesterday. “I was very close to him, but I decided to come back because the team needed me.”
Serero arrived in camp on Monday to find chaos, with Mosimane being sacked, but like everybody else he has accepted the decision and says he is prepared to give his all to the country.
“I know a lot is expected of me,” he said. “But I never feel any pressure. The only time I felt nervous in recent times was when I played against Manchester United in the (Uefa) Champions League.”
The man who went to Ajax on the back of a successful domestic season last year conceded he had found it tough in Amsterdam, having been reduced to a bit-part and then a reserve league player. “Holland is tougher than the PSL, of course, but I was disturbed mainly by injuries. But I have recovered and I’m ready to help Bafana win if given a chance.”
The team checked into their hotel and had dinner before retreating to their rooms. They were scheduled to train at the match venue this morning.