Bafana Bafana head coach Hugo Broos has explained why he is not happy with Shandre Campbell’s Club Brugge.
Bafana Bafana players reported to camp on Monday, while the Orlando Pirates stars were given two extra days off and players from Europe only need to be released on 15 December.
Tylon Smith who is at QPR side already arrived, while FCSB defender Siyabonga Ngezana, Lyle Foster and Campbell are yet to arrive.
Broos expressed his frustration with Brugge to stick to the 15 December release date although Campbell is not a regular starter and even featured in their second team recently.
“You can’t negotiate because the teams or the clubs said, ‘FIFA said the 15’. So I can understand for a player like I was very happy, because QPR could do the same thing with Tyron, but okay, they released them, and I was very happy with that,” Broos told the media.
“With Shandre, the day they got the call up. Five minutes later, we had a letter from Brugge saying, ‘Oh no, only the 15th’. And this is a little bit bitter, because you can do that with a guy who plays with the first team, who plays regularly with the first team.
“Shandre is always on the bench, or sometimes not on the bench, or he’s playing the last five minutes.
“So I’m asking myself – what is the reason to keep that player in your club when you get the opportunity to have a preparation with international team for AFCON.
“Shandre played last Saturday with a second team of Belgium, of Brugge, who plays in the second division of Belgium. He scored two times.
“They won 3-1. He played fantastic. So that is good that he’s playing games, and that he’s not only on the bench and coming in.
“So yeah, but for Ngezana, I told you already, he’s playing Monday, so I don’t think there will be a problem. Only he has to play tomorrow Euro League, and Lyle is playing on Saturday.
“But again, yeah, you can’t negotiate, those are the rules. And I think maybe I should do the same when I should be a club chairman or a coach from a club, and it is an important player, surely I should say, ‘no, no, no, we stayed here till the 15th’. But I think that some clubs had to be a little bit more [understanding].
“How you call that thinking, more at the player than because if Shandre is not there in Brugge, it’s not the reason why they should lose the game. So, yeah, but again, those are the rules, and we have to accept you. Accept coach.”
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