Arendse backs Ronwen Williams for a special AFCON milestone
Bafana Bafana AFCON-winning keeper Andre Arendse has sent a special message to Ronwen Williams who stands a chance of equaling his record.
The Mamelodi Sundowns goalkeeper is a clean sheet away from equaling Arendse’s record of most clean sheets in a single AFCON tournament.
Arendse kept four clean sheets when Bafana won the AFCON on home soil in 1996, conceding just two goals.
With Bafana Bafana taking on Cape Verde in a quarter-final match at Charles Konan Banny Stadium on Saturday, Arendse has applauded the 32-year-old for how he has become a quality leader at the back over the past few years.
WHY ANDRE ARENDSE HAS BEEN IMPRESSED WITH SOUTH AFRICA’S NUMBER ONE
“I think Ronwen has grown as the number one, there is no doubt about that. That comes with experience, playing every single game for Bafana over the last few years,” Arendse told FARPost.
“That’s a big plus, and he has done it well. He has also been able to present leadership qualities and capabilities. When I talk about leadership qualities, I am talking about leading a back five, for example, and if you can do that with the way you talk to them.
“The way you guide them, automatically, it’s going to bring you clean sheets. I always believe that a goalkeeper is only as good as his back four, back three or back five. However, the coach wants him to play. Ronwen has adapted to that very nicely,” he said.
Williams has been able to keep clean sheets in the past three games against Namibia, Tunisia and Morocco. Arendse believes that will be one of the crucial aspects for the South African team to win the AFCON tournament.
“So you can see that in the last three performances. When you look at those three last performances, Ronwen never really had to make an outstanding save because the back four worked very well together, and so he has been able to do that very well,” he said.
“There is no doubt about it: if this team is going to win the AFCON, it’s going to come from how many clean sheets they were able to keep. So, for me, it’s where we will either win it or lose it.”
SPECIAL MESSAGE FOR RONWEN WILLIAMS FROM THE BAFANA BAFANA LEGEND
“Don’t think too much about it. Just go and do it. Don’t have anything hanging over your head, and think about it too much. He must just keep doing what he does and it will come naturally. So I wish all of them the very best.”
The match between Bafana Bafana and the “Blue Sharks” will kick off at 22:00 [SA time].
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