Bafana Bafana head coach Pitso Mosimane has provided an initial update on the squad as preparations get underway for their upcoming 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers against Kenya.
South Africa will host Kenya at Orlando Stadium on Friday in the first of two qualifying fixtures, with Mosimane looking to get his squad ready for what promises to be an important international window.
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The national team coach confirmed that the majority of the squad had reported for duty, with the remaining international-based players expected to arrive as the camp progresses.
However, Mosimane admitted that there are a few injury concerns following the weekend’s club action, although the medical team is yet to complete its assessments.
“All well, no complaints at the moment, everyone that’s supposed to be in camp is here, local players are all there, they came yesterday, some international players today, in the morning and some others are in different time zones,” he said.
“The US players were playing early on Sunday morning, so we expect them to arrive this evening so we can have a full team. So far from the players who have arrived, the doctor has given us the green light.
“But obviously from the matches on the weekend, we have those knocks that could be okay in a few days, we still have to assess those who played early on the Sunday morning or afternoon, depending on the time zone in USA. Then we can have a full update of injuries.”
The former Mamelodi Sundowns coach explained that the nature of international football means injury assessments can sometimes extend until just days before a fixture, particularly with players arriving from different leagues and time zones.
He added that the medical team, alongside team spokesperson Mninawa Ntloko, would communicate any significant concerns once the assessments have been completed.
“I think the medical team and Mninawa [Ntloko] will let you know if there’s any concern, you know how it is in the national team who is available until maybe three days before the match to be honest, because some might come with small knocks, some may need a day or two to shake off the knocks we had,” he continued.
“That’s the life of international football as coach, you don’t have four, five days as you want, the other one and a half days are used for travelling and those small knocks and injuries, but so far so good, no big complaints.
“We will see now in training, who is feeling what, it’s not easy to tell but we are good.”
Bafana will now use the coming days to assess the fitness of the squad before Friday’s encounter against Kenya, with a second AFCON qualifier also against the Harambee Stars, in Nairobi, four days later.