The longstanding issue of player availability for national duty has once again come to the forefront as Bafana Bafana prepare for crucial 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers.
The dispute has been reignited with Grant Kekana's absence from the national team, prompting the call-up of Kaizer Chiefs defender Given Msimango as his replacement. Former Mamelodi Sundowns player Bennett Mnguni has voiced his opinion that Sundowns should allow their players to join the national team camp for assessment, as has been customary.
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However, Sundowns' approach of notifying the national team about certain players' inability to honour call-ups due to injuries has sparked discontent, particularly with Bafana coach Hugo Broos. The Belgian expressed his frustration earlier in March when some Sundowns players reported to the national team camp in Algeria for the inaugural FIFA series not in peak physical condition, leading to a public disagreement with Sundowns coach Rulani Mokwena.
The situation has been further complicated by players like Mothobi Mvala, Teboho Mokoena, Khuliso Mudau, and captain Ronwen Williams, who have been central to the ongoing disputes between Sundowns' technical team and South Africa.
Manqoba Mngqithi, Sundowns' then co-coach, lamented the condition in which Mvala returned from national team duty, highlighting the strain between club and country commitments. Mnguni, speaking to GameOn on Radio 2000, reminisced about past practices where injured players were still required to report to a national team camp for assessment by the medical staff.
"I remember when we were playing if you have an injury, they will let you come to the camp and the doctors, physios will observe, they will look at you whether you can play or you cannot play."
Mnguni explained. He urged for a more transparent process, allowing national team doctors to evaluate the players' fitness levels. Broos, addressing the media, pointed out the peculiar concentration of injuries among Sundowns players called up for national duty, suggesting an underlying issue related to the club's demanding schedule.
"Not only the team will phone the national team doctors and coaches and say so a player cannot come because there's an injury like that…muscle pull or groin and so forth," Mnguni told GameOn on Radio 2000.
"Yes, we have got a pool of players in South Africa that deserve to play in the national team but Hugo Broos has got his own players that he wanted to see in this game but now let's give him a chance with the doctors to see whatever is happening with these boys.
"Some players they want to get a rest, let us be honest, they want to get rest. And you cannot say I cannot go to the national team and then you will have a problem, the only thing that you can do is say 'I'm injured, I've got a muscle pull' and then they will say 'no you cannot come while you are injured'," Mnguni continued.
Broos was rather perplexed how all the injuries in the national team camp currently emanates from Sundowns only and urges their medical team to deal better with the issue as they will have the same problem next season.
Amongst the players in a race against time for the qualifiers are Mokoena, Modiba, Bathusi Aubaas, Khuliso Mudau and goalkeeper Williams.
"It's amazing that from the six injured players they are six players of the same team… Sundowns. Sundowns have many injuries this season and we know; everybody knows of the reasons is certainly the overload problem.
"They play a lot of games, but what is interesting is that 75 percent of the injuries are groin and hamstring injuries and I think there has to be something more than that. I hope that the medical staff of Sundowns can find the reasons for that because next season it will be exactly the same," Broos said in a press conference.
As Bafana Bafana gear up to face Nigeria and Zimbabwe in World Cup qualifiers, the issue of player availability underscores the delicate balance between club commitments and national team duties, with both sides seeking the best outcomes for their respective campaigns.
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