The South Africans will face Egypt away from home on Sunday  exactly a week after the two teams played to a 1-1 draw at the Toyota Stadium in Bloemfontein. The team returned to Johannesburg on Monday, and there were several changes to the squad, with new faces joining the camp while some players have been released back to their clubs.

Neo Maema. Photo: Morgan Piek

Nduduzo Mhlongo from Golden Arrows, Naledi Hlongwane from Kaizer Chiefs, and Monnapule Saleng and Azola Tshobeni from Orlando Pirates have all been released. The new arrivals are the former Bloemfontein Celtic strike Victor Letsoalo who is now at TS Galaxy, as well as the Royal AM dup of Mondli Mpoto and Levy Mashiane.

“So, what we did when we got to camp was a squad profile to assess who is playing and who fits best in which positions in terms of our approach. In doing that, we also worked on our structure,” he said.

“After the match in Bloemfontein, we realised that there were certain positions we needed to reinforce, especially with the upcoming match against Egypt in Egypt.

Bongani Sam. Photo: Morgan Piek

“We have released a few of the players who joined the camp last week and brought in new players to maintain the squad balance. We appreciate their contribution and have released them back to their clubs.”

“The players in camp give us a very good balance, and we are looking forward to providing others with a chance, just like those who played against Egypt in the first leg. They performed well, and we are very positive about the group we have going into Egypt. We know they will give their best for the team and their country.”

Bafana Bafana travelled to Cairo on Thursday, and Sunday’s crucial CHAN tournament second leg qualifier will kick-off at 21:30.

OFM Sport/Morgan Piek dg