11 Players Named in Bafana Bafana Squad for Crucial AFCON Qualifier — One Spot Still Open

Football Association of South Africa unveiled a 23-man Bafana Bafana roster on Monday, placing eleven players — including goalkeeper Ronwen Williams’s deputy Veli Bvuma, defenders Reeve Frosler and Siyanda Xulu, midfielders Lyle Foster and Given Thibedi, and attackers Evidence Makgopa and Bongokuhle Hlongwane — under immediate national spotlight ahead of the side’s 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualification showdown at FNB Stadium in Johannesburg.

The full selection confirms right-back Frosler alongside central defender Sifiso Hlanti, versatile utility man Miguel Timm, industrious midfielder Yusuf Mthethwa, tenacious enforcer Mothobi Mvala, creative schemer Bathusi Aubaas, and clinical finishers Terrence Mashego and Mduduzi Shabalala earning call-ups, while emerging Orlando Pirates winger Relebohile Mofokeng joins veteran Mihlali Mabaso and pacy Cormick Moloisane in a forward rotation designed to stretch opposition defensive lines across both legs.

Bafana head coach Hugo Broos told a packed media briefing at Nasrec that the panel reflects depth rather than sentimentality, adding that Grant Kekana, Keagan Dolly, and former captain Themba Zwane all received individual correspondence explaining why the technical team opted for younger energy this cycle, with SAFA technical director Neil Tovey confirming the squad reports for camp preparation at the Dobsonville Stadium facility no later than Wednesday morning.

South Africa currently occupies second position in Group K with seven points from four fixtures, trailing Morocco by three and needing at least four points from the remaining two clashes to secure automatic qualification; the last time Broos rotated this heavily was during the 2023 qualifying campaign, a decision that ultimately contributed to a crucial draw against Liberia which many analysts credit as the turning point in the nation’s recent resurgence under his tenure.

Moments after the announcement circulated online, a photograph captured Cormick Moloisane laughing with Mduduzi Shabalala outside the Kaizer Chiefs training complex in Naturena, both men clutching phones showing the official SAFA notification — a candid image that spread rapidly across South African social media and reminded supporters why grassroots talent pipelines still produce players capable of representing twenty million passionate compatriots.

With Abrahams and Cross also confirmed among travelling reserves and Duba listed as standby cover for the goalkeeper berth, one starting position in the attacking third remains genuinely contested between three players whose recent club form separates them by the thinnest of margins — so which combination will Broos trust when the referee’s whistle sounds at FNB Stadium?

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