Bafana Bafana CHAN coach Molefi Ntseki has explained why he was happy to push up Malibongwe Khoza into defensive midfield instead of his usual centre-back role.
The Mamelodi Sundowns defender delivered a Man of the Match performance in the middle of the park as Bafana drew 1-1 with Algeria on Friday. They were playing their opening Group C match of the tournament in Kampala, Uganda, where the team is based for the group stages.
Ntseki opted for the more experienced pair of Ramahlwe Mphahlele and Kwanda Mngonyama for the central defence, which allowed the 21-year-old Khoza to slot into the midfield base, where he demonstrated his capabilities effectively.
Khoza played a crucial role in the build-up to South Africa’s equaliser at halftime. His long-range pass, which bypassed the Algerian defenders, found Menzi Masuku, who then set up Thabiso Kutumela. Kutumela made no mistake from close range, calmly slotting in Bafana’s equaliser.
WHY MOLEFI NTSEKI OPTED FOR MALIBONGWE KHOZA IN MIDFIELD
“When he was playing in the DDC, he played as a midfielder,” Ntseki told FARPost. “These are players I’ve been tracking from the junior ranks, and also getting promoted to the first team. In a few games, he played as a centre back, adding numbers in midfield.”
Ntseki highlighted the qualities of the Sundowns academy graduate that make him easily slot into midfield.
“He reads the game quite well. In terms of our approach, I think he carried out the role very well. He was moving from deeper zones to the midfield. He’s a very intelligent player; he reads the game very well. He was coming from underneath to switch our play and to give those forward passes. The goal that we scored came from his forward pass… he has technical quality [to deliver those].”
The South Africa coach believes ‘Mali’ is a “future Bafana Bafana player”.
Meanwhile, Friday’s result puts South Africa in fourth place in Group C, with three games remaining. They are in the same group as hosts Uganda, Guinea, and Niger.
Algeria were playing their second game of the tournament. The North Africans beat co-hosts 3-0 in their opening match of the tournament on Monday.
Bafana’s next opponents are Guinea on Monday at the Nelson Mandela Stadium in Kampala. They will need to win that match to keep their hopes alive of coming out of the group.
RELATED STORY: Bongani Zungu on Broos’ Bafana snub since 2021