Heredia urges Mosimane to field strongest Bafana Bafana team against Egypt

Former Bafana Bafana goalkeeper coach Alex Heredia has called on head coach Pitso Mosimane to select his strongest available team for Sunday’s friendly against Egypt, including first-choice goalkeeper Ronwen Williams.

South Africa face Egypt at the Cairo International Stadium, with kick-off scheduled for 20H00. Egypt will be without talisman Mohamed Salah, who has been ruled out because of injury concerns.

Heredia believes Mosimane should resist the temptation to rotate his squad and give Sipho Chaine or Ricardo Goss an opportunity in goal. Instead, he wants Williams to start against one of Africa’s strongest sides.

“No. To me, I keep Ronwen. Egypt is coming straight from the World Cup. It’s a very strong team,” Heredia told Soccer Laduma.

“And I think it’s not time for Pitso to do any type of experiment. He could have put other goalkeepers against Eritrea. It’s alright. But not against Egypt in Egypt.”

Williams is expected to earn his 70th appearance for South Africa’s senior national team if he is selected as anticipated.

Goss has won six caps for Bafana Bafana, while Chaine has made four appearances. Both goalkeepers could benefit from international experience, particularly if Williams is unavailable for future matches.

However, Heredia said the importance of Sunday’s fixture meant experience should take priority, even though the match is officially a friendly.

“I think Pitso needs to go with the best he has at the moment. You know, with experience. So as much as it’s a friendly, it’s a game that we have to win,” he added.

Ranking points at stake

Bafana Bafana have climbed to 49th in the FIFA World Rankings, and Heredia believes a victory over higher-quality opposition such as Egypt would help South Africa continue that progress.

South Africa come into the fixture after defeating Eritrea, with Mofokeng and Appollis among those to impress as Mosimane’s side secured the win.

“It’s actually a big boost for South Africa to be moving up in the rankings,” Heredia said.

“But to keep going up, Bafana Bafana will have to keep winning. There’s really no friendly match at this stage.”