Bafana Bafana head coach Hugo Broos has explained the omission of Sphephelo Sithole in his 34-man preliminary squad that will face Morocco in the CAF AFCON qualifier next month.
South Africa will face the North Africans at the FNB Stadium on Saturday 17 June 2023 with both nations having already secured their spots at the 2023 AFCON tournament due to be held in Ivory Coast.
In addition, the AFCON tournament will kick-off from the 13th of January to the 11th of February 2024.
Broos’ preliminary squad will report to a reduced pre-camp set to be held from 31 May 2023 to 7 June and it will consist of local and a few overseas-based players.
The preliminary squad will be cut down to 23 players when the Belgian mentor announces his final early next month.
The final squad announced will go into camp on Sunday 11 June 2023.
WHY SPHEPHELO SITHOLE NOT INCLUDED THE BAFANA BAFANA SQUAD
Sadly, Sithole will miss the Morocco clash due to an injury. The 24-year-old footballer broke a bone on his foot.
Sithole has since undergone surgery on his left foot and he is expected to be out for two months.
“Sithole will be out for two months after undergoing surgery on his left foot,” Mzansi Ballerz revealed.
“The 24-year-old broke a bone on his foot in a league clash against Leixoes two weeks ago and he is expected to be on the sidelines for several weeks.
“‘Yaya’ has since gone under the knife and is expected to be back in action at the end of July.”
Sithole was one of the key players that helped Broos’ side to qualify for the 2023 AFCON tournament.
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