The South African Football Association (SAFA) has stated that head coach Hugo Broos asked for his assistant Helman Mkhalele to be excused for the upcoming African Nations Championship qualifiers.
Mkhalele, 55, who assumed the role in the 2022 qualifiers, where South Africa fell short against Angola, was due to lead the side in the upcoming fixtures against Egypt.
However, with the 1st leg set to take place on Sunday in Bloemfontein, former Bafana Bafana coach Molefi Ntseki, who recently parted ways with Marumo Gallants in his Technical Director role has replaced ‘Midnight Express’.
“After we got information that the South African senior national team coach requested that Helman Mkhalele must be recused from this team because we have the priority of Bafana Bafana playing 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers against Lesotho and Benin in a few weeks’ time, we agreed,” Technical Committee Chairman Jack Maluleke told SAFA.com.
“Coach Ntseki is there because he’s in the system and we requested him to assist because we needed somebody who can step in because this is an urgent matter.”
The 1st leg will take place at Free State Stadium on Sunday afternoon at 17h00.
