Minister of Sports, Arts, and Culture Gayton McKenzie has thrown his weight behind Orlando Pirates winger Relebohile Mofokeng, who faced public criticism after Bafana Bafana’s elimination from the 2025 AFCON.
Mofokeng was in the starting line-up when Bafana suffered a disappointing 2-1 defeat against Cameroon at Al Medina Stadium in Rabat on Sunday night.
The defeat against the Indomitable Lions saw South Africa crash out of the Nations Cup despite being tipped as one of the hot favourites to win the prestigious tournament.
Cameroon exposed Bafana’s defensive frailties to score two goals in each half of the match before Evidence Makgopa netted the only goal for Hugo Broos’ charges in the closing minutes.
WHAT MCKENZIE SAID TO MOFOKENG AFTER AFCON DISAPPOINTMENT
In a match against Cameroon, Broos made a handful of changes to his starting line-up, handing first starts of the tournament to Mofokeng, Samukele Kabini, and Nkosinathi Sibisi.
Meanwhile, Mofokeng had a glorious chance in the first 10 minutes of the match to give Bafana the lead with only the goalkeeper left to beat; however, he guided his shot over the goal posts.
In a post-match interview with SABC Sport, Mofokeng took full responsibility for the Bafana loss, stating that had he scored his chance, the team would have been in a better position to win the encounter.
The highly-rated attacker has since faced criticism on social media, and McKenzie told Mofokeng not to blame himself for Bafana’s AFCON exit.
“Let me tell you something, we win as a team, and we lose as a team. Never take any blame because when we win, we win as a team. You played very well, congratulations.” McKenzie said at OR Tambo International as Bafana landed from Morocco on Wednesday morning.
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