Dean Furman of South Africa challenged by Ruby Pamarra of Mozambique during the International Friendly between South Africa and Mozambique on the 11 September 2012
South Africa will resume their 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifying campaign this Saturday with a key match against Central African Republic at the Cape Town Stadium.
Bafana Bafana find themselves placed third in Group A after successive 1-1 draws against Ethiopia and Botswana last year. Six matches will be played by each team in the four-team group with the eventual winners to be drawn against one of the other nine group winners in a straight knockout match to earn a place in Brazil. By all accounts, Bafana improved their performance at the recent AFCON in South Africa and there is now a growing belief that the team could regain control of their World Cup qualifying campaign.
Their two stalemates mean this clash against CAR is virtually a must-win for coach Gordon Igesund, who is taking charge of his first qualifier since taking over the reins of the national team. A victory in the Mother City on Saturday night would put Bafana top of the standings, temporarily at least, ahead of log-leaders Ethiopia hosting Botswana the following day. Igesund has selected a very offensive team. The exclusion of Bongani Khumalo means that Kaizer Chiefs stopper Itumeleng Khune will take over the captain’s armband, a decision that was also welcomed by the greater public.
Other changes to the side see the inclusion of Daine Klate and Daylon Claasen in midfield, Morgan Gould in defence and the return of Dino Ndlovu to the attack. Katlego Mphela joins Khumalo on the list of dropped players after unsuccessful showings at the AFCON, while Thulani Sereo has been given a rest after being rushed by Igesund to participate in the Nations Cup.
Since the squad has been announced Bafana have suffered two injury blows with Siyabonga Sangweni and Tsepo Masilela withdrawing. Tebogo Langerman of Mamelodi Sundowns and Eric Mathoho of Kaizer Chiefs were named as their replacements. There is surprisingly still no place for Andile Jali.
‘Les Fauves’ (The Wild Beasts) have undergone a remarkable transformation, rising from a lowly 202nd position in 2010 to their current 52nd spot in the FIFA rankings, eight places above Bafana and two places above them in Africa (ninth and 11th). This will be the first clash between South Africa and Central Africa Republic – either in a friendly or competitive fixture. The Wild Beasts have never qualified for either the Africa Cup of Nations or the World Cup, though they very nearly reached the AFCON held earlier this year. They were beaten 3-2 on aggregate by the tournament runners-up Burkina Faso in the final phase of qualifying.
To get to that stage they knocked Egypt out on a 4-3 aggregate over two legs. CAR are in second place in the group with three points after an opening day home win over Botswana and a 2-0 away loss against Ethiopia in their second clash. They have called-up a strong, mostly foreign-based squad for this clash. Former coach Jules Accorsi will be back at the helm after being recalled by the country’s new government, while current incumbent Herve Loungoundji may return to his former role as assistant.
Key playmaker Foxy Kethevoama, who had also been an injury doubt, is included in a squad in which all but two of the players are foreign-based. Whereas the Bafana squad consists of players from the domestic league, most of the Beasts’ players are from smaller European leagues and a few in other African leagues.
The Central African team are strong at home and will approach this away tie looking for a draw. Bafana come into this match with some confidence after exceeding expectations in the AFCON and are tipped to give a dominant performance to bag the vital three points.
