Mosimane to assess Bafana Bafana fringe players in Egypt friendly

Pitso Mosimane will use South Africa’s friendly against Egypt on 4 October to assess players who were on the fringes during Hugo Broos’ tenure, after Bafana Bafana’s opening two 2027 Afcon qualifiers.

The match will be played at Cairo International Stadium, with South Africa scheduled to face the Pharaohs immediately after their qualifying fixtures against Guinea and Eritrea.

Mosimane begins his second spell as Bafana Bafana coach with a home qualifier on 26 September. Safa has yet to announce the venue for that match. South Africa will then travel to face Eritrea four days later, although the game is reportedly set to take place at a neutral venue in Egypt.

The 2027 Afcon finals will be co-hosted by Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda, meaning a positive start will be important for Bafana Bafana. Victory in the opening match would provide momentum for the rest of the qualifying campaign and underline their ambition to challenge for the title.

Mosimane was officially unveiled at Safa House on Tuesday, 31 August. During the announcement, the former CAF Coach of the Year said he would need to build on the foundations established by his predecessor, Broos, while improving the team’s competitiveness in both performances and results.

The new coach is expected to rely on a strong group of players regularly selected by Broos for the qualifiers. However, he must also identify replacements for several important players who are injured.

Those unavailable players include Mbekezeli Mbokazi, Khuliso Mudau, Thalente Mbatha and Evidence Makgopa.

Safa confirmed on Thursday morning that Egypt would provide the opposition in the international friendly, four days after South Africa’s reported meeting with Eritrea in Egypt. The fixture will give Mosimane an early opportunity to examine new options before settling on his preferred squad.

He also has the chance to offer international football to players who struggled to establish themselves under Broos, as he begins reshaping the national team for the new era.

“Matches against Egypt are always tough and we do not expect anything less in this latest installment. I think that coach Pitso’s return to Bafana Bafana will add another twist because they know him very well in the North African country. This will be another great test for both teams,” Safa president Dr Danny Jordaan added in the statement.

Mosimane is expected to name a preliminary squad in the coming days. That group will later be reduced to the final selection shortly before the Fifa international window begins.

The window runs from 21 September to 6 October and will be the first such period since the World Cup. South Africa’s schedule means Bafana Bafana could have a demanding period of competitive and international football, with the Egypt fixture offering Mosimane one final opportunity during the window to assess his wider squad.