Bafana Bafana were better, but should their 1-0 Nelson Mandela Challenge win over Egypt be enough to save Shakes Mashaba? One wouldn’t like to think so.
The pressures that come with playing competitive football are exactly what South Africa have battled with on the football field, so you have to be careful when judging their performance at the Orlando Stadium in Soweto on Tuesday night.
Yes, the introduction of Keagan Dolly added some bite to the Bafana attack, while there was some good movement upfront by striker Thamsanqa Gabuza and Mpho Makola.
It was Makola who got the decisive goal as early as the seventh minute, when a delightful cross from the right by winger Mandla Masango – following an Egyptian mistake in front of the penalty area – was met by a powerful header from Orlando Pirates midfielder Makola on his home ground.
Bafana looked a bit more composed going forward than they did during their ultimately disastrous Africa Cup of Nations qualifying campaign, which they ended with a whimper in a 1-1 draw with Mauritania in Nelspruit last Friday to finish in third position in Group D.
Masango was lively down the right flank, using his speed to good effect to get in behind the Egyptian defence, while Dolly roamed all over the field to pop up in unusual positions. But the Mamelodi Sundowns star was probably under-utilised on the night, and South Africa’s movement wasn’t quick enough to put Gabuza behind the Egyptian backline.
It was the age-old problem of finishing or the last pass that neutralised Bafana’s attack. Gabuza was often found running into a dead-end as he was a lone striker who didn’t have the necessary support, while having two defensive midfielders in Andile Jali and Dean Furman meant that South Africa didn’t have enough numbers going forward.
Egypt had their moments on the counter-attack, with Roma’s Mohamed Salah and Arsenal star Mohamed Elneny pulling the strings upfront as the North Africans’ pace and skill caught the Bafana defence napping at times.
Furman was booked in the first half for a late challenge, while Clayton Daniels nearly gave away a goal in the sixth minute when he needlessly headed the ball into the path of Salah, but a weak shot was easily saved by Itumeleng Khune.
Egypt’s best chance came in the 55th minute when Salah connected with a cross from the left, but he fired wide with Khune rooted to the spot and well beaten.
The Roma playmaker was clearly out of luck as he missed another superb opportunity a few minutes later when he moved smartly to lose Tebogo Langerman inside the box, but his header was wide of Khune.
Bafana looked more threatening when Sibusiso Vilakazi came on to replace Gabuza in the second half, and the new Sundowns signing got into the penalty area a few times, although his last touch let him down.
Khune and the rest of the defence combined to keep Egypt at bay and record Bafana’s third consecutive victory in this fixture.
But there wasn’t enough of an improvement or inspiration to suggest Mashaba is the right man to take Bafana through the 2018 Fifa World Cup qualifying campaign, which starts on October 3 with an away fixture against Burkina Faso.
He still picks too many of his out-of-form favourites such as Gabuza and Makola, while many outstanding talents such as Thulani Serero and Gift Motupa are either out of the squad or on the bench.
The tactical make-up of the starting XI also left much to be desired, with two defensive midfielders and a single striker in Gabuza who hardly features for his club Pirates.
The only way Bafana can move forward is to cut their losses with Mashaba, who is contracted for the World Cup qualifiers, and get in a new head coach with fresh blood in the team.
ashfak.mohamed@inl.co.za
@ashfakmohamed