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South Africa Football Association president Danny Jordaan has said Bafana Bafana cannot be compared to Morocco and Ghana.
WHAT HAPPENED? Both the Black Stars and the Atlas Lions participated in the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. And given the nature of the players that featured for both nations, Jordaan believes Bafana should not be compared to their two African rivals.
At their disposal, Ghana had players who switched their allegiance from other countries just before the finals. This is believed to have boosted their competitive level.
WHAT HAS BEEN SAID: “We must not equate a team that has 90% of their players coming from Europe and becoming citizens in order to be in the team,” Jordaan explained.
“How’s it possible that one [Inaki] Williams is playing for Ghana, and his brother, another [Nico] Williams, is playing for Spain?
“Our focus is, we must not be distracted by that. Fundamentally, our position is [that] we must produce world-class players that can compete with the best in the world.”
AND WHAT IS MORE: Jordaan also promised that Safa’s national executive committee and the PSL joint liaison committee will look into increasing the number of local players PSL clubs should have in their starting XIs.
At the moment, the top-tier clubs are allowed to have a maximum of five foreigners and six local players in their starting lineups in a match.
“We are going to start the new year by addressing these issues because for too long there’d been a question asked, ‘but why is Bafana not performing?’ he added.
“In 1996, we had 10 goalkeepers in the Premier Soccer League, Pirates at one stage had seven strikers who were playing in the National League.
“So, we have to say ‘is the issue of having an arrangement of six-plus-five working helping the national team?”
THE BIGGER PICTURE: Apart from Williams, Tariq Lamptey and Mohammed Salisu are the players who switched loyalty to Ghana in recent times.
Andre Ayew and Jordan Ayew were born in France and have been key players for the Black Stars.
On the other hand, Hakim Ziyech and Sofyan Amrabat – key players for Morocco, especially in Qatar – were born in the Netherlands. Romain Saiss and Sofiane Boufal were born in France.
On the other hand, South Africa have predominantly depended on the players plying their trade in the local league, with a few foreign-based ones boosting their ranks.
WHAT NEXT FOR SOUTH AFRICA? After missing the Africa Cup of Nations in Cameroon last year, Bafana hope to qualify for the 2023 finals, and have Morocco in their qualifying group.
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Source: goal.com
