Former Bafana Bafana captain Aaron Mokoena has expressed his delight at the quality of options coach Hugo Broos has in central defence.
South Africa have an embarrassment of riches in central defence with Mamelodi Sundowns’ Grant Kekana, Mothobi Mvala, Kaizer Chiefs’ Rushwin Dortley, Orlando Pirates’ Nkosinathi Sibisi and Thabiso Sesana as well as Romania-based Siyabonga Ngezana, all competing for two positions.
The increased competition has also seen Bafana Bafana’s defensive record improve as they kept three clean sheets in their 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers when they went on to finish top of their group.
Mokoena happy with ‘healthy competition’
It is a situation that Mokoena has termed ‘very promising’ as he feels a good defence will be the basis for success for Bafana Bafana in their competitions.
“It’s a nice competition. It’s a healthy competition. From the coaching perspective, I think they have assembled a good team in that department. One can see the quality of the team, and there is great improvement,” Mokoena told FARPost.
The former Blackburn Rovers and Portsmouth defender lauded Broos for assembling a strong team that is now capable of challenging for titles.
Will the defence carry Bafana to titles?
“It’s a good headache for coach Hugo Broos and Helman Mkhalele [Bafana assistant coach]. It’s better for a coach to have options than none. What I have seen is good competition, which is so important, improving our quality and the national team,” he added.
“In the last matches, Mthobi Mvala was in, and Grant [Kekana] was out. It shows that the technical team’s options are really good.
“The future looks bright for us as a nation. It’s so promising. I think we are on the right track in terms of producing quality players, not only defenders.”
