Hugo Broos finally took South Africans out of their misery when he named his official 25-man Bafana Bafana Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) squad last week, and there were several surprise additions and omissions by the Belgian tactician.
The likes of Mbekezeli Mbokazi, Khulumani Ndamane, Samukelo Kabini, and Thabang Matuludi, among others, are some of the stars who have impressed Broos in recent camps and were rewarded with spots in the Afcon squad.
Bafana will be returning to the continental space as one of the teams to beat, following their impressive showing at the previous Afcon in Ivory Coast, where they scooped themselves a bronze medal.
However, Broos made several changes to the team that finished third by ruthlessly wielding the axe on 14 of those players to accommodate the young and future stars of Bafana.
Sunday World takes a look at some of the key players who were omitted and the youngsters who were surprisingly included.
Shandre Campbell:
One of the future stars that Broos was referring to is Club Brugge starlet Shandre Campbell, who extraordinarily made Broos’ final team.
Campbell will head to the Afcon in Morocco later this month with no senior national team cap under his belt.
The SA U20 star has been making headlines at Brugge in Belgium for his world-class goals and skills, which ultimately earned him a promotion to the first team this season.
Tylon Smith:
Smith is another new face to the Bafana Afcon squad, as the towering central defender continues to impress out in England with his new club, Queens Park Rangers.
Smith must have caught the attention of Broos after his performance at the U20 Afcon, where he not only won the competition with the team but also walked away as the player of the tournament.
Khulumani Ndamane:
If talking about one of the handful of players who grabbed their opportunity of representing their country at the highest level, TS Galaxy’s lanky defender Ndamane needs to be a part of that conversation.
Ndamane got his first call-up at Bafana for the World Cup Qualifiers and has since never looked back. He will compete for a spot in the center back role with Mbokazi, Sibisi, Ngezana, and new boy Smith.
Thabang Matuludi:
Similar to Campbell and Smith, Thabang Matuludi was one of the biggest surprise additions, as he was picked to be the deputy of Khuliso Mudau ahead of experienced and versatile Mamelodi Sundowns right full-back Thapelo Morena
Samukelo Kabini:
Kabini is another player who has made a rapid rise in the national team, especially after securing a move to Molde FK in the Norwegian top flight from Galaxy.
Kabini will be competing for a place in the starting line-up with the seasoned left-back Aubrey Modiba.
There are some notable exclusions in the team as well which may have taken Mzansi by surprise. To the disbelief and disappointment of many staunch football fans, Themba Zwane was left out of the squad, a decision that must have been difficult to make. Mshishi has been out of action for several months due to injury and only made a return to action.
Thapelo Morena is another senior player who fell victim to Broos’ axe after the coach preferred Polokwane City’s Matuludi as Khuliso Mudau’s deputy at the right full-back position.
With Iqraam Rayners, a lot of people were looking forward to seeing him in the final squad because of his predatory skills in front of goals.
Rayners, could surprisingly only make the list of players on standby.
