Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos has explained why he included uncapped duo Bradley Cross and Olwethu Makhanya in his final 26-man squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
The Belgian tactician named his final 26-man selection at the Sefako M. Makgatho Presidential Guesthouse in Pretoria on Wednesday.
Despite previously not featuring for the senior side, Makhanya and Cross are part of the squad for the tournament in the USA, Mexico and Canada, with Broos explaining that one reason for Cross’ inclusion is the injury situation of Aubrey Modiba, who picked up an issue in the first leg of the CAF Champions League final.
“Bradley was with us two years ago. He suffered also a little bit of the level of Chiefs in the last years,” Broos stated.
“Now, this year it was better the level of Chiefs. And we also still have a little problem with Modiba. So I had to look at that. Normally, there will be no problem for Modiba.
“But should there be a problem, we only have Kabini on the left side and that was also a reason, not the reason, but also a reason why we took Bradley with us.”
‘Makhanya is tall, powerful, everything you need’
Broos then explained the inclusion of Makhanya, saying him and Helman Mkhalele and him have met every week to follow the performances of their broader Bafana squad – with Makhanya’s performances in the Major Soccer League catching their eye.
“We don’t call players because of the sun shines or something,” he continued.
“No, it’s a lot of work. Every Monday, Helman and me are in the office, and we start to look in the list we have – who played, did they play well and so on.
“We follow like Makhanya also, it’s not because of the last two weeks. We already wanted him in March but it’s because of other reasons, he was not there. But we still follow them, we know how our players are performing in their teams.
“The only thing is that I have sometimes another moment to call them then you. Again the performances of Makhanya are very good. He’s playing every minute with his team. He’s a good defender, he’s tall, he’s powerful.
“Very important things for modern football.”