Bafana Bafana coach Pitso Mosimane has explained why Lyle Foster’s assist earned him a long embrace after the striker set up Relebohile Mofokeng’s goal against Kenya.
Foster came on as a substitute late in the second half and set up Bafana’s second goal in the 76th minute of their 2027 AFCON qualifier at Orlando Amstel Arena in Soweto on Friday night.
It was Foster’s first appearance under Mosimane. The striker had missed the coach’s opening three matches following a club move and returned to the squad after a difficult 2026 FIFA World Cup.
Foster nearly scored after coming off the bench, shooting narrowly wide from fellow substitute Puso Dithejane’s delivery. When the next opportunity came, he picked out Mofokeng.
The Houston Dynamo forward ran straight to Mosimane after Mofokeng fired Bafana into a 2-1 lead. The coach wrapped his arms around the striker, held him for a few seconds and patted him on the back.
When FARPost asked Mosimane what the embrace meant, the Bafana coach pointed to Foster’s decision moments earlier. With a chance to shoot, the striker cut the ball back for Mofokeng to finish.
WHAT PITSO MOSIMANE SAW IN FOSTER’S ASSIST
“He showed me that he’s not here for himself. Normally, he would not pass that ball back… So he shows that he wants to play for the team and he shows that he’s not selfish. And that’s the embrace. I appreciate that.
Mosimane described Mofokeng’s finish as world-class and said he would have been happy had Foster gone for goal and scored himself. “Well-taken goal, world-class finish. I celebrated with Rele a lot. But more to Lyle, to say, ‘You really show that you want to play for the country,’ Mosimane added.
The former Al Ahly coach stressed how he took particular satisfaction from seeing a striker give up a chance to score so a teammate could finish the move.
“And that’s the only message you can send. You send the message on the pitch by your behaviour. The behaviour tells everything. If he scores without passing it, it’s good also. But it’s also sweeter when we score when he passes, because normally strikers don’t pass.”
Meanwhile, Ryan Ogam’s late equaliser earned Kenya a 2-2 draw. Harambee Stars had cancelled out Bafana’s opener, which came via an own goal.
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