Opinion – Bafana off to insipid start in Afcon 2021 qualifiers

Ntseki does need to be given due time to impose his own mark on Bafana, having taking over from Stuart Baxter, but the early signs are worrying, with Black Stars goalkeepeer Richard Ofori kept far busier this season in a Maritzburg United shirt than he was by Bafana’s strike force on Thursday.

Read More: Bafana downed by Ghana in Afcon opener.

Read More: Zungu to miss Sudan clash with knee injury. 

It is fair to say  Baxter would have been taken apart in certain sections of the media if his Bafana had failed to muster a shot on Ofori’s goal in the manner Ntseki’s Bafana did in this match. Indeed, I can immediately recall just how Baxter was (correctly) pilloried after his side failed to manage a shot on target in their opening match of the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations finals in Egypt, in a 1-0 loss to the Ivory Coast.

Ntseki, by contrast, seems to me to have been given a fairly free pass after Thursday’s encounter, and while he certainly deserves a bit of leeway, it was hard to be impressed with much that his side delivered.

Ntseki’s team selection raised some eyebrows, with Bradley Grobler preferred to Lebo Mothiba, even though the latter was coming off the back of a double for Strasbourg last weekend, and Thato Mokeke given a start in midfield, when Guingamp’s Lebo Phiri was available, even if Kamo Mokotjo was not 100 percent fit.

To be fair to Ntseki, he did bring Mothiba on after the break, and the young striker also failed to impose himself ,as Bafana  could not find a way through a resolute Ghana defence.

It also has to be mentioned, meanwhile, that Ghana on the road is the most difficult game that South Africa are likely to play in their qualifying campaign for the 2021 Afcon. Losing the experience of Bongani Zungu to injury early on, meanwhile, certainly didn’t help.

Ntseki’s post match comments afterwards, however, where he said he could not fault his players, are also a little concerning.

He claimed his side executed his gameplan as he wanted, which seemed to involve overloading Ghana on the right wing (Ghana’s left). Early on, Percy Tau found some joy, and it could have been a different scenario if Grobler had not blasted a decent chance over the bar. One Ghana, however, began to cope with this tactic, there seemed little else in Bafana’s arsenal in terms of finding a way through the Black Stars’ rearguard.

It could be that Bafana  obliterate Sudan on Sunday, and get their campaign back on track, and as I have remarked, it is far too early to judge Ntseki. The Bafana head coach, however, does have plenty of thinking to do ahead of Sunday’s game, which is a must-win encounter.

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