Bafana player has broken his silence

Foster has been ruled out of the tournament after recently returning to English Premier League action with Burnley after an extended period out with mental health issues.

Mothiba underwent surgery for a fractured patella, after suffering an injury while in action with Ligue 1 side RCS Strasbourg which has seen Orlando Pirates duo Zakhele Lepasa and Evidence Makgopa elevated as the two main strikers for AFCON 2023.

“It’s sad we don’t have them, but also there was a decision of the coach, some other circumstances that came up too, but we’re confident in the group we have,” Tau said.

“I’m one of the senior guys here and I’ll try and see in training how I can form partnerships with the guys. Like I said, the responsibility is not solely on me, the other guys have to play and I’ll put in a good shift to help the team, I’m confident the guys will help me.”

Tau doesn’t feel as if there’s an extra weight on his shoulder as one of only three players who have AFCON experience, with teammates Themba Zwane and Ronwen Williams.

“No, not at all [there’s no more pressure on me], we all share the same responsibilities, yes I’ve been here for some time but in my first few camps, the other guys also shared the knowledge they had and it helped me,” Tau said.

“I’m also trying to do the same and we all have a part to play, I also have a part to play.”

The 29-year-old forward has scored 15 goals in 41 senior caps for the South African National team.

Percy Tau believes that Bafana Bafana will have a good journey in the Africa Cup of Nations as the players have been fighting every hard in training.