The Mercury

Five ways to solve Bafana’s woes

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BAFANA Bafana’s failure to qualify for the 2022 Africa Cup of Nations is a massive blow for South Africa. Here are five ways to fix the mess.

1. FIRE NTSEKI

Coach Molefi Ntseki was not Safa’s preferred choice. But after failing to get their men due to their unavailabi­lity and asking price, Safa had to settle for him.

The 1-1 draw against Ghana last Thursday was a welcome result, but that Bafana incredibly lost against Sudan is unforgivab­le.

2. SELECT PLAYERS BASED ON MERIT

The inclusion of goalkeeper Itumeleng Khune in the latest squad was a biased decision. Khune may be one the most capped Bafana players with 90 appearance­s but he has been off form lately.

The absence of Bongani Zungu, Thulani Serero, Dean Furman and Keagan Dolly in the squad after their clubs refused to release them due to Covid19 concerns was a massive loss.

But had Safa built a strong relation with their clubs, they could have at least gotten them available for the Sudan game.

4. GET MOTSEPE INVOLVED

Caf president Patrice Motsepe, is one of our own, and that’s why we should include him in the day-to-day running of Safa. One of his visions is to see Bafana doing well and qualifying for major tournament­s.

But that we’ve failed him as a nation means we need to bring him closer.

No doubt he is a busy person, but his input and wisdom could be the trump card that we need in order to ensure that we no longer fail to qualify for Afcons and World Cups.

5. APPOINT FORMER PLAYERS

The involvemen­t of former players who have played the game and qualified for major tournament­s in the Bafana set-up shouldn’t be taken for granted. Of course, don’t take anything away from Arthur Zwane.

He has played the game, but the introducti­on of someone like Lucas Radebe in the structure could prove to be fruitful.

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