Share

Mashaba: I won't shake things up

Cape Town - Shakes Mashaba stressed the need cohesion ahead of the Nigeria clash and said that he won't make many changes to the team.

Mashaba said he was pondering whether to make changes to his team, but ruled out making wholesale replacements following the success in the Sudan encounter.

“We need to be cautious, we are building up a team here. If you look at the cohesion, it’s not at its best.

“Yes, the Sudan game we won, but in the first half we struggled which is what we can’t allow to happen here.

“A big number of changes will cause us problems. Let’s look at starting with one or two changes. We need not make bigger changes because we still want these players to gel.”

Wrapping-up preparations at the final session on a flawless Cape Town Stadium pitch, Mashaba appeared to be undecided whether Furman would be in his starting line-up or not.

Kamohelo Mokotjo seemed to be preferred, but after a stellar performance in testing conditions in Khartoum, Furman seemed an obvious choice to start again in his home town.

Elsewhere, Sibusiso Vilakazi, who was the hero in Sudan scoring twice from the bench, looked to have successfully secured himself a starting role -- if Mashaba’s training was any indication.

Despite fielding a barrage of questions afterwards, Mashaba succeeded in the battle of wits and gave little away about his starting XI ahead of Wednesday’s 8pm kick-off.

“When you sit down and look at your player, it’s not easy to come up with the 11. That is why we decide to make announcements on the eve of the match, also the reason is that I want to sleep and rest,” the 64-year-old said with a grin.

We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Voting Booth
Should Siya Kolisi keep the captaincy as the Springboks build towards their World Cup title defence in 2027?
Please select an option Oops! Something went wrong, please try again later.
Results
Yes! Siya will only be 36 at the next World Cup. He can make it!
25% - 1273 votes
No! I think the smart thing to do is start again with a younger skipper ...
29% - 1471 votes
I'd keep Siya captain for now, but look to have someone else for 2027.
45% - 2249 votes
Vote
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE