Broos hopes Bucs give Makgopa chance to play
Striker’s lack of action sees him miss another Bafana camp
In the eyes of Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos, Orlando Pirates striker Evidence Makgopa is one of a kind, a rare breed, and he wants him back in the national squad.
The Belgian coach gave Makgopa his Bafana debut last year against Uganda, and the lanky striker rewarded him with two goals in a 3-2 win. Makgopa has been a regular feature in Broos’s Bafana but was absent for September’s camp and won’t be part of the team in Mbombela next week.
The former SA U/23 international’s season has stagnated after he suffered an ankle injury in the preseason after returning from his loan at Baroka. Bucs coach Jose Riveiro has been integrating him into the team as he’s made a few appearances from the bench.
He is yet to make his official Bucs debut as he’s seemingly way behind in the pecking order, with Riveiro handing playing minutes to all his four strikers – Kermit Erasmus, Zakhele Lepasa, Bienvenu Eva Nga and Kwame Peprah – but Makgopa.
Although he’s fond of Makgopa, Broos chose to not select him as he is not match fit to face Angola and Mozambique.
“If Makgopa is playing, he will be with us. He was always with us before the new year,” said Broos as he addressed the media.
“I like Makgopa, therefore he was with us from the beginning. I saw immediately that the potential is there but we have to work a lot with him to make him a good striker. He’s a great guy in the group.”
Makgopa, who falls under the profile of lanky strikers such as former Bafana striker Lungisani Ndlela and England striker Peter Crouch, is a last of a dying breed.
He has qualities that Broos admires. Broos has urged his mentors at Pirates to focus on improving the nitty gritty details of his game.
“He has this good profile but there’s still a lot of work to do with him,” Broos said.
“Makgopa is a tall player, he’s good with the head, technically he’s not so bad, but he can improve.
“That’s something to work on, but I can’t do it, I’m the Bafana coach, so we don’t have time to do it but I hope they do it at the club.
“That they work with him on positioning in front of the goal, protecting the ball, asking [for] the ball and all those things because he has potential.”