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Cape Town - A South African Football Association spokesman has confirmed they are talking to Absa Premiership clubs to ensure players are made available for the upcoming Nelson Mandela Challenge clash with the Ivory Coast.
Question marks remain over whether Bafana Bafana boss Shakes Mashaba will be able to field a full-strength side at the Mbombela Stadium on November 30, on account of the fact that the match falls outside the FIFA calendar.
Added to that, the showpiece event takes place just one day after the Telkom Knockout Final between Platinum Stars and SuperSport United.
As a result, any international players from the aforementioned teams will not be able to take part in the game.
And SAFA are hoping to get assurances over player availability from the rest of the league's clubs in the not-too-distant future.
SAFA spokesman Dominic Chimhavi told KickOff: "The game is on the Sunday after the Telkom Knockout Final [between Platinum Stars and SuperSport United], so only two clubs are unlikely to send their players.
"As for the others, we are in negotiations with them to make their players available for the match because of course we want to honour the great man, Nelson Mandela."
South Africa have tasted defeat in their two previous editions of the Nelson Mandela Challenge; a 1-0 defeat to Zambia followed by a 2-0 loss at the hands of Nigeria in 2013.
Incidentally, Bafana Bafana did face the Ivory Coast at the very same venue in the 2011 edition, with the match ending in a 1-1 draw on the day.
Question marks remain over whether Bafana Bafana boss Shakes Mashaba will be able to field a full-strength side at the Mbombela Stadium on November 30, on account of the fact that the match falls outside the FIFA calendar.
Added to that, the showpiece event takes place just one day after the Telkom Knockout Final between Platinum Stars and SuperSport United.
As a result, any international players from the aforementioned teams will not be able to take part in the game.
And SAFA are hoping to get assurances over player availability from the rest of the league's clubs in the not-too-distant future.
SAFA spokesman Dominic Chimhavi told KickOff: "The game is on the Sunday after the Telkom Knockout Final [between Platinum Stars and SuperSport United], so only two clubs are unlikely to send their players.
"As for the others, we are in negotiations with them to make their players available for the match because of course we want to honour the great man, Nelson Mandela."
South Africa have tasted defeat in their two previous editions of the Nelson Mandela Challenge; a 1-0 defeat to Zambia followed by a 2-0 loss at the hands of Nigeria in 2013.
Incidentally, Bafana Bafana did face the Ivory Coast at the very same venue in the 2011 edition, with the match ending in a 1-1 draw on the day.
