Thebe Mbanga
This evening, at 6pm SA time, Bafana Bafana play their 11th and arguably most important match at the World Cup finals when they face Czechia.
Anything less than a victory will leave their tournament hanging by a thread and could turn their remaining match against South Korea, in the early hours of next Thursday, into little more than an academic exercise.
The first and most obvious reason Bafana can and must win is that, in Czechia, they meet the weakest opponent in the group — and not only because Czechia are ranked 40th in the world to Bafana’s 60th.
Czechia needed two penalty shootout victories in the European playoffs to qualify. They remain lethargic and unconvincing, lacking players of technical ability and relying heavily on set-pieces, including long throw-ins in the final third, to create meaningful chances.
Their only goal so far came in their 2-1 loss to South Korea, after they had taken the lead.
Coach Hugo Broos has to resolve both formation and personnel issues for tonight’s game, starting with who replaces Sphephelo Sithole as the midfield anchor after he gave away the opening goal and was sent off against Mexico.
Captain and goalkeeper Ronwen Williams played the ball as he does every week at Mamelodi Sundowns, but Bafana forgot that he is not surrounded by technically accomplished club teammates who are comfortable playing from the back.
It looks like Sithole will be replaced by Thalente Mbatha, a defensive midfielder of limited abilities who can sometimes look lost in midfield for his club, Orlando Pirates, but recovers well enough to get the job done.
The two players Broos must start are Oswin Appollis and Relebohile Mofokeng on the flanks, supporting Iqraam Rayners — not Lyle Foster — up front.
The Czechs will have studied Foster closely from his time in the English Premier League, and he looks drained by Burnley’s relegation campaign. Mofokeng will struggle against Czechia’s physicality, but he can still hurt them if protected by the referee and properly supported by his teammates.
Teboho Mokoena and Jayden Adams must be given another opportunity to drive the team creatively. Bafana’s defence will have to be at its best in aerial challenges, which will place a heavy responsibility on Williams and Ime Okon.
Bafana must play on the front foot in a more attacking formation, or Broos risks wiping out much of the goodwill earned by his achievements, including qualifying South Africa on merit for the World Cup for the first time since 2002.
The second and more compelling reason Bafana must win tonight is that they are unlikely to get anything from the game against South Korea. They will struggle to cope with South Korea’s pace and technical ability.
The best way to approach South Korea would be to play with a low block and a double pivot in midfield to shut the back door.
That would leave room for one creative player, who would then need to be assisted by the wingers — again, probably Appollis and Mofokeng. Tshepang Moremi could also help connect defence with attack, with the line led by Rayners or a reinstated and rested Foster, and later Evidence Makgopa.
When this World Cup concludes, South Africa must hold an inquest into how two Asian nations, South Korea and Japan, have grown into football powers over the 34 years since South Africa were readmitted to international football in 1992, and the 30 years since South Africa were crowned African champions in 1996.
Japan’s J.League was launched soon after South Africa’s readmission to FIFA, at a time when South Africa already had a strong established local league.
Both Japan and South Korea play in a confederation where they travel vast distances to face opposition of uneven quality, including smaller football nations such as the Maldives. Yet they have built systems that consistently produce technically accomplished, disciplined and tactically intelligent players.
Japan have beaten Brazil and England over the past year and have drawn with the Netherlands at this World Cup. Both Japan and South Korea are expected to qualify for the knockout stages, with South Korea likely to do so at South Africa’s expense — or possibly even as group winners ahead of co-hosts Mexico if they draw with or beat them at 3am tomorrow morning.
China, with a population of more than a billion and years of investment in its own Super League, has still not got it right in the way Japan and South Korea have.
Their secret is a willingness to admit their own limitations and invest in developing players — two things South African football has too often been unwilling to do.
Next week, those limitations may be exposed. But before then, Bafana have an opportunity to keep that match alive by beating Czechia tonight.
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