Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos has explained why he opted to take only 23 players to the Afcon tournament and not 27 as compared to other nations.
Broos announced his 23 players on Thursday and also put three on standby for the CAF 34th edition showpiece.
But most of the nations have announced 27 or 28-member squads for the tournament which starts next month in Ivory Coast. This includes Bafana’s Group E opponents Namibia who have announced 28 players and Tunisia who have named 27.
HUGO BROOS EXPLAINS WHY 23 PLAYERS DECISION WORKS FOR HIM
During a question and answer session with the media organised by SAFA after the squad announcement, Broos gave his reasons on why he opted for a lesser number.
“First of all the 27 or 23 is a matter of budget, that is number one. Secondly, I am not a fan of taking 27 players [to the tournament] to put four players in the stands every game,” he said.
“I don’t think it’s good mentally for the players. You take 27 players and you have more choices but I have enough choices from the 23. I don’t see why I should take four more players to the Afcon. Players also know that when you go with 27, he is number 25 or 26 and he will never play, never.
“So, why should I take 27 players? I don’t see what could be an advantage for me or the team. I took 23 with Cameroon and even then, there were three or four players who didn’t even feature for one minute,” he continued.
BAFANA BAFANA COACH CAUTIOUS OF PROBLEMS THAT COMES WITH A BIG NUMBER
“So, again, if you don’t have the right mentality, you can have big problems with 27 players because they just have to train and they are not on the bench. So, that’s the reason why I don’t take them.
“I have enough with 23 players. Okay, it can always happen that you have four or five injuries but I don’t think that will happen. I don’t think so, so I have enough with 23 to go to Ivory Coast.”
RELATED STORY: All you need to know about Bafana Bafana’s group-stage matches
