Johannesburg - Golden Arrows boss Zoran Filipovic says defender Siyabonga Sangweni isn't fit enough to play for Bafana Bafana.
Sangweni has refused to train with Arrows for the past two weeks as he shows his discontent with Arrows' decision not to sell him to PSL glamour club Kaizer Chiefs.
But while Bafana boss Pitso Mosimane defended his decision to select the 29-year-old for his squad to face Niger in a 2012 African Nations Cup qualifier on Saturday, the Abafana Bes'thende mentor feels the player isn't ready.
"I'm worried about his fitness level because he has not trained for many days. I don't know why he is in the Bafana Bafana team," he told the Daily Dispatch.
"This guy needs more physical training before he could play. I agree with his call up only in the interest of Bafana Bafana.
"I didn't want to put Sangweni in this game because he has just come back to training. His physical side is not right and he still needs to train very hard."
However, Filipovic admitted that he was delighted to still have a player of Sangweni's calibre on Arrows' books.
"He is an experienced player, who I will use in our next game, but his physical progression should be perfect. I'm happy now that he is back and it will really be very good to play him."
Sangweni has refused to train with Arrows for the past two weeks as he shows his discontent with Arrows' decision not to sell him to PSL glamour club Kaizer Chiefs.
But while Bafana boss Pitso Mosimane defended his decision to select the 29-year-old for his squad to face Niger in a 2012 African Nations Cup qualifier on Saturday, the Abafana Bes'thende mentor feels the player isn't ready.
"I'm worried about his fitness level because he has not trained for many days. I don't know why he is in the Bafana Bafana team," he told the Daily Dispatch.
"This guy needs more physical training before he could play. I agree with his call up only in the interest of Bafana Bafana.
"I didn't want to put Sangweni in this game because he has just come back to training. His physical side is not right and he still needs to train very hard."
However, Filipovic admitted that he was delighted to still have a player of Sangweni's calibre on Arrows' books.
"He is an experienced player, who I will use in our next game, but his physical progression should be perfect. I'm happy now that he is back and it will really be very good to play him."