Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos has questioned the Premier Soccer League (PSL) support for the men’s senior national team amid injury and fatigued concerns ahead of the Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon).
This after the Belgian tactician confirmed that Mamelodi Sundowns midfielder Mothobi Mvala may not be fit enough to travel with the rest of the squad uptown in the Ivory Coast on Thursday due to a groin injury.
Broos also raised major concerns over captain Ronwen Williams and star midfielder Themba Zwane. Williams is said to have not trained with the team the past four days, while Zwane also missed training on Monday.
Broos did, however, confirm that the Sundowns duo will travel with the squad and be ready for the tournament.
“Ronwen will not play tomorrow [against Lesotho] but he will be ready for next week Tuesday, there is no doubt about it,” Broos said during a press conference at the Southern Sun Hotel in Kempton Park, in the East Rand on Tuesday.
“Themba got a kick two days ago at training, but again, there will be no problem for next week.
“The biggest problem is Mothobi. He has again a groin injury. So, the doctor is now with him, and we will wait for the medical report, but I am not sure if he will go to Ivory Coast with us.”
‘Late break has harmed players’
Ahead of their Afcon preparation game against Lesotho at the Lucas Moripe Stadium on Wednesday, Broos slammed the PSL’s decision to end domestic league on December 30 instead of the 24th as he had initially requested for.
“You know the discussion I had with the PSL and honestly speaking, all these players had not really recovered. We see that in training and that was my fear all along,” he said.
“Based on the tests that were taken, we discovered that the players were not a 100% fresh. This is what I had said eight months ago, when I asked for the league to be stopped on the 24th of December.
“All those players needed enough rest, looking at the number of games that they had in the last two months. Like Sundowns, they played almost every three days from August until December.
“So, I don’t understand that a league of a country cannot accept to stop the league sooner, because they knew it before the end of last season. I am sorry to say this but don’t tell me that they (PSL) supports Bafana Bafana.”
Bafana are set to jet off to the Ivory Coast on Thursday evening. They open their 2023 Afcon account against Mali in Group E clash next week Tuesday.
