Photo Credit - Bafana Bafana - South Africa.
South Africa coach Hugo Broos refused to be drawn into the saga surrounding Teboho Mokoena, who is said to have been fielded in the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifying fixture against Lesotho despite being suspended for accumulative yellow cards.
The Mamelodi Sundowns midfielder featured for 82 minutes in the matchday five fixture at Peter Mokaba Stadium in Polokwane, while Bafana Bafana went on to win 2-0 to take up first place in a tight Group C that also includes Benin, Rwanda, Nigeria and Zimbabwe.
However, it later emerged that Mokoena had accumulated yellow cards in previous World Cup qualifiers including South Africa’s 2-1 victory over Benin in November 2023 and in June 2024 against Zimbabwe which should have constituted a one-match ban.
With an official reports claiming that both Lesotho Football Association (LFA) and Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) have written an official complaint to the world governing body FIFA asking for South Africa to be punished, the Belgian coach went ahead to withdraw Mokoena from the squad that faced Benin in their matchday six fixture away on Tuesday.
During the contest at a sweltering Stade Félix Houphouët Boigny in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire, second half goals from Lyle Foster in the 52nd minute and Jayden Adams in the 84th minute were enough to give Bafana a 2-0 victory away from home.
When asked after the game, to give his thoughts on the saga, Broos, told the media: “Firstly, you understand that I won’t comment on that. It is something that will be resolved in the coming weeks, so you shouldn't expect anything from me, no comment.”
On the performance of the team against Benin, the Belgian said: "I think, first of all, there was a good analysis of the opponents, so congratulations to our analysis [team], and secondly, I think the players did what we asked them.
“We knew where we could be dangerous against this team of Benin, which is a good thing, but what we did very well today was keeping the ball and waiting for the right moments. In the first half, Benin could have done something, but in the second half, with the weather very hot, they grew tired at a certain moment and it started to be easier for us.”
The win took Bafana to 13 points at the summit of Group C, five clear of second-placed Benin, who now face an uphill battle to stay in contention.
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