Former Bafana Bafana captain and English Premier League defender Aaron Mokoena has expressed his views on the national team’s depth in the centre-back position.
Under the tutelage of the outspoken Hugo Broos, the national team have experienced a resurgence in recent times.
This year, they secured a bronze medal at the 2023 AFCON tournament in Ivory Coast. Building on this success, SA recently qualified for the 2024 AFCON, to be held in Morocco. Moreover, Bafana have maintained an impressive unbeaten streak of 16 matches across all competitions.
SA boasts a talented pool of centre-backs, including Mamelodi Sundowns duo Mothobi Mvala, Grant Kekana, Rushwin Dortley of Kaizer Chiefs, Nkosinathi Sibisi, who plays his club football for Orlando Pirates, and FCSB defender Siyabonga Ngezana. The highly-rated quintet has created intense competition for starting positions at national team level.
AARON MOKOENA PRAISES BAFANA’S CENTRE-BACK DEPTH
Mokoena is impressed by the depth of talent in Bafana Bafana’s defensive line. He believes this healthy competition among players will elevate the overall quality of the team.
“It’s a nice competition. It’s a healthy competition. From the coaching perspective, I think they have assembled a good team in that department. One can see the quality of the team, and there is great improvement,” Mokoena told FARPost.
“It’s a good headache for coach Hugo Broos and Helman Mkhalele. It’s better for a coach to have options than none. What I have seen is good competition, which is so important, improving our quality and the national team.
“In the last matches, Mthobi Mvala was in, and Grant [Kekana] was out. It shows that the technical team’s options are really good.
“The future looks bright for us as a nation. It’s so promising. I think we are on the right track in terms of producing quality players, not only defenders.”
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