Bafana Bafana attacker Mihlali Mayambela has explained what delights him about the environment at the national team and the direction that the Hugo Broos’ side is taking.
Mayambela is part of the 23-man squad that will face Eswatini at FNB on Friday evening and Ivory Coast on Tuesday.
Mayambela, who is the younger brother of Cape Town City youth coach Mark, made his national team debut in 2022. He has been in fine form for Aris Limassol in Cyprus and scored his first goal of the season during the 3-2 win against Anorthosis on Sunday.
WHY THE BAFANA BAFANA ENVIRONMENT IS RARE TO FIND
Speaking to the media ahead of the match against neighbours Eswatini on Friday, Mayambela wishes the current mood in the team carries on for longer.
“You can tell with the performances and also maybe when you come to see the training, the environment, it’s amazing,” he said.
“It’s difficult to find this type of environment in football, even at the club level. To feel at home, to be happy, to see good performances and to play with good players. This is what we have here, so I am quite sure that it will not end here.
“It will continue and there is more to come and there is a lot of room for improvement. But for me in my opinion, there is a lot more to come, only good things,” added the 27-year-old.
MIHLALI MAYAMBELA ON LACK OF FANS AT HOME MATCHES
Mayambela also reflected on what has been a concern for Bafana in recent times with fans not attending home matches.
“Of course, you want to play in a full stadium with your people behind you, just like when we went to Liberia. When we went to the pitch inspection it was full already. So, we wish for that and we would like to have that. But also I think what’s more important is to continue to do our Job.
“We [must] win the games, hopefully, things will turn around. From our side, as players, we really want that, to have people in the stadium. You don’t want to play in an empty stadium with the fans against you at home. But also on our side we will just keep on doing our job and win the football matches. That’s the most important thing.”
The encounter against Eswatini kicks off at 6:00 pm.
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