Bafana Bafana
Mosimane eyes Senegal scalp
2012-02-29 14:10
Johannesburg - South Africa coach Pitso Mosimane is determined to defeat Senegal
in Wednesday night's friendly international at the Moses Mabhida
Stadium.
Unlike most international friendlies where there objective is to
blood new talent and test potential formations, with Bafana Bafana still
reeling over their AFCON 2012 failure, Mosimane says nothing less that a
win will do.
Bafana's last victory came against Burkina Faso in a friendly in
August 2011 and it appears that their clash with The Teranga Lions is
purely about rebuilding the confidence of the players.
Mosimane said ahead of the match: "This is the one game where I
can say I'll take a scrappy win. We need to win to rebuild our
confidence and to bring more confidence to the people."
The former assistant coach did, however, concede that he will also try and alternate his strikers.
He added: "We need to try different combinations upfront because we need goals and we need to win.
"While there's pressure, I still believe we need to give young players a chance.
"We have exciting young players like George (Maluleka),
(Thamsanqa) Sangweni and Edward Manqele, all young players who can bring
something different to the squad.
"At the same time we have experienced players who play for big
teams and who've been with the national team for a while; they should be
able to overcome the pressure."
Defender Tsepo Masilela is, however, unlikely to get a run out
after he injured his hamstring in Getafe's 1-0 loss to Real Madrid last
weekend.
Bafana team doctor Carl Tabane revealed: "We assessed the player
(Masilela) and are happy with him. It's only a slight issue that we will
work on."
Mosimane concluded: "I'm happy that he is here but we have to be
careful with Tsepo for the mutual benefit of us and his Spanish team,
Getafe."