Booth sees Bafana’s bright side without Sundowns stars

Former Bafana Bafana defender Matthew Booth believes the exclusion of some Mamelodi Sundowns players will not negatively impact the national team in future.

Over the years, the Brazilians have been dominating the South African national side, but the recent 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers saw Orlando Pirates take over.

Bafana head coach Hugo Broos called up seven Pirates players while Sundowns provided six men in the recently concluded World Cup qualifiers against Lesotho and Nigeria.

Failing to make it to camp was the injured Masandawana captain, Themba Zwane, while Thapelo Morena, Khuliso Mudau, Thapelo Maseko, Mothobi Mvala and Grant Kekana were overlooked.

The six Sundowns stars used to form the core of Broos’ side and were part of the Bafana squad at the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations [AFCON]  in the Ivory Coast.

However, in their absence, South Africa managed to beat Lesotho 3-0 before standing their ground to frustrate Nigeria to a 1-1 draw, remaining firmly in control of Group C in the qualifiers.

“Sundowns have very tough competition, and players have generally been managed well, even though you will get injuries due to the high number of games they play,” Booth told FARPost.

“That is something the national team coach has to deal with. For example, Nyiko Mobbie has been a national team regular since Hugo Broos arrived. It’s not like the coach puts emphasis on game time, but there is a certain degree of loyalty to certain players, whether they go through bad form or come back from injury.

“It’s a tough situation for the national team coach to be in, but I don’t think injuries at Sundowns or players like Mudau who haven’t been playing will affect the national team,” added the retired footballer who played for Masandawana.

“We have some great young players knocking on the door, so I see competition being a good thing for the national team.”

With Kekana and Mvala unavailable, that presented Pirates centre-back Mbekezeli Mbokazi with an opportunity to raise his hand up for a regular berth in the national side.

The 19-year-old was named Man of the Match after the Super Eagles’ match on Tuesday, following a solid display in which he neutralised current African Footballer of the Year Ademola Lookman.