Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos is unmoved at the prospect of their AFCON rivals milking Khuliso Mudau’s trademark flailing hand after it cost South Africa against Egypt last Friday.
The Mamelodi Sundowns defender’s outstretched arm caught Mohamed Salah’s face, sending him to the ground and earning Egypt a penalty. The Liverpool star converted from the spot for the goal the Pharaohs needed to edge Bafana 1-0 in the Group B confrontation.
It was a defeat which complicated Bafana’s chances of finishing at the top of their group. They now face Zimbabwe in the last match of this phase, seeking at least a draw to progress to the knockouts.
Swinging his hand during duels appears to be Mudau’s pattern in his attempts to ward off challenges. There have been concerns that opponents could take advantage of that to claim fouls against the right-back.
BROOS SHRUGS OFF MUDAU FLAILING ARM ISSUE
“First of all, it was not the intention of Khuliso to slam Salah. He just wanted to protect [the ball], and this is also something you have to take into account when you look at the picture,” said Broos. “He was not really doing this [to foul Salah], he was protecting. There is a difference between touching and hitting. This is what I meant when I said there are too many rules now.
“When there is something happening, it is that and that, is the sun shining or is the rain falling? The evidence of things is lost now, and this is a pity. That’s why they give them a yellow card and a penalty, because for them it was hitting a player, and this is not true.
“After the game I asked Salah, ‘what is this?’ You know that in the Premier League they ‘kill’ you every week, and he said he touched me, but I was surprised that it was a penalty.”
Broos is, however, concerned that footballers could now find it difficult to express themselves during games for fear of being penalised for what appear to be harmless actions.
“This is something we have to learn when there is VAR, and they see things like that. What is the intention of the player?” the Bafana coach went on.
“If someone goes to the goalkeeper and kicks him from behind, there is no question, then this is a straight red card, go home, you don’t do that. But not for something like this, it is frustrating when you see that.
“You can tell players to pay attention to all those things, but they will not be free to play anymore. If a player thinks I have to keep my arms like this or that, this is not football. That is what I mean when I say there are too many rules.”
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