Bafana Bafana head coach Hugo Broos has proven to be quite an interesting character and his selections at times have raised eyebrows, for myself included.
I'll be the first to admit that I've seen some improvement in the national team since Broos took charge and this gives me some hope going into the Africa Cup of Nations in Ivory Coast in a few months from now. Not to win the competition, but hope that the tournament will not be a disaster, where we get knocked out in the first round.
My one concern, at times, is the selection of players, particularly the ones who come in as replacements for those who are not available.
In the last camp, Broos called up TS Galaxy's Mlungisi Mbunjana as a replacement for Mamelodi Sundowns' Teboho Mokoena. It's great for someone like Mbunjana to realise a dream of playing for the national team, but is it a call-up that makes sense? I don't think so.
Mbunjana is 33 and the chances of him playing at the Africa Cup of Nations, or at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, are slim. As a way of looking to the future, Broos had an opportunity to look within the PSL for younger players that he would be able to integrate into the team in the long run, but having Mbunjana means he is including a player who is unlikely to feature in the team.
You'd probably question why I am talking about age when there is someone like Themba Zwane in the team. The difference with Zwane is that he has been part of the national team for quite a number of years and his experience at that level is invaluable. At times, bringing in players who are a bit older, and don't have too much international experience, does not always benefit the national team.
In this camp, Broos has brought in Mduduzi Mdantsane as a replacement for Egyptian based Percy Tau, which is quite a bizarre decision, considering how different the two players are.
Mdantsane is an attacking threat, but has not settled in yet at Chiefs and has not been a regular feature in the Bafana side. He may be giving the 28-year-old an opportunity to prove himself ahead of the Africa Cup of Nations, but the replacement for someone like Tau does not quite add up for me, especially when you look at the impact Tau makes in the final third of the pitch for the national team.
I understand the importance of increasing the pool of players for the national team, but the changes have not always made sense to me.
