Pitso Mosimane’s Bafana Bafana make flying start with seven goals in two Afcon qualifiers

Pitso Mosimane’s return as Bafana Bafana coach has begun with seven goals in two Africa Cup of Nations qualifying matches, raising questions over whether the team can maintain that attacking form against stronger opposition.

South Africa opened Mosimane’s second spell in charge with a 2-1 victory against Guinea before producing an emphatic 5-0 win over Eritrea in Cairo on Wednesday.

Those results have put Bafana Bafana in a strong position in their qualifying group, while the team’s attacking performances have provided an early boost for supporters.

Relebohile Mofokeng was the standout player against Eritrea, scoring twice to register his first international goals. Oswin Appollis was another major contributor, supplying three assists during the match.

Mosimane has also used his return to introduce younger players to the squad. The 30-player group has an average age of 24, although the coach said reducing the average was not the only objective.

“We had to bring in five new players and had to bring young players, [some based in] Europe, give them the opportunity to play,” Mosimane said.

“That’s all we wanted, to bring the age down, but also don’t focus only on bringing the age down; experience also helps.”

The coach believes Bafana Bafana already have a solid base, but said improvements were still required as they look to become more effective in front of goal.

“The foundation is good. It’s the team coming from the World Cup. But just improve it a little bit and let’s try to score more goals,” he said.

The victory over Eritrea underlined the range of attacking options available to Mosimane. Mofokeng and Appollis were both involved in the scoring, while Siphephelo Sithole and substitute Luther Singh also contributed.

There has been criticism that South Africa could have scored more than five goals in Cairo, but Mosimane’s second stint remains at an early stage.

The challenge will be whether Bafana Bafana can reproduce the same attacking efficiency when they face more demanding opponents.