Could Pitso Mosimane be considering a new #1 goalkeeper for Bafana Bafana?
Ronwen Williams was assigned that role under former coach Hugo Broos.
Sipho Chaine and Ricardo Goss were then given time in the Egypt friendly.
Could we be seeing a three-way shootout for South Africa’s top goalkeeper?
Why didn’t Williams play against Egypt?
Mosimane always planned to field a new team against Egypt in Cairo on 4 October.
According to the South African Football Association, he wanted to give every member of the 30-man squad some game time.
Williams started the two AFCON 2027 qualifiers in September-October, and was rested for the friendly against the Pharaohs.
Chaine and Goss, who had not played under Mosimane, were given the nod for the game on Sunday night.
“It is a friendly game, and we need to see what they are capable of at this level,” he told the SAFA website.
How did Chaine and Goss perform in Cairo?
Chaine played around an hour of the Egypt match and was given decent ratings.
He was strong defensively and did not concede a goal, despite a few attempts by the hosts.
Goss was brought on during the second half and was almost immediately under threat.
Egypt had rung several changes by then, and he did well to fend off some high-risk challenges.
However, it may be difficult to draw comparisons after just one recent match in the goalposts.
The debate over Bafana Bafana’s main goalkeeper
Williams did concede a goal against Guinea, but then kept a clean sheet against Eritrea.
While he has been under criticism, the Mamelodi Sundowns keeper is finding his confidence again.
On the other hand, Chaine is the PSL’s top goalkeeper, having conceded just once in 7 games, per FlashScore.
For Goss, it is even harder to compare, having been relegated to the Sundowns bench for most of the season.
Meanwhile, former Bafana Bafana goalkeeper Alex Heredia had called on Mosimane to include Williams against Egypt.
As cited by Africa Soccer, he wanted to see the Sundowns captain featured in the clash in Cairo.
“I think Pitso needs to go with the best he has at the moment… So as much as it’s a friendly, it’s a game that we have to win.”
For now, Mosimane is likely to stick with Williams, but Chaine and Goss may complicate the situation for him.
SHOULD WILLIAMS REMAIN AS BAFANA BAFANA’S #1?
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