Bafana Bafana coach Shakes Mashaba says the emphasis needs to shift from just qualifying for tournaments to a realistic mindset of winning tournaments.
Bafana have a three-pronged qualifying programme which includes the World Cup, the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations and next year's African Nations Championship. Those are goals that Mashaba thinks are achievable.
It is too early to say whether Bafana's Afcon qualification is in jeopardy after their drab goalless draw against Gambia last month, but they made their task all the more tougher in a qualification phase where only group winners go through.
Mashaba is not getting ahead of himself but he is aware of the importance of having higher ambitions.
That was the case leading into this year's Afcon tournament and Bafana bombed out in the first round.
"We need to win some of these major tournaments. We need to stop saying, 'Let's go to the quarterfinals and the semifinals'.
"You look at Orlando Pirates now and they are nearly in the [Confederation Cup] semifinals. Once they get into the semifinals, anything is possible because they will take so much confidence into those matches. Anything can happen from that point onwards," Mashaba said.
"When Pirates won the Champions League in 1995, it had a knock-on effect for the national team the following year in the Afcon tournament.
"When the clubs do well, then it starts to reflect positively on the national team. More of our teams need to venture into the continent and aim to do well because it will make our lives easier in the national team set-up."
Having been paired with Angola in their road to the 2018 World Cup, it is one they will be expected to navigate without much difficulty. If there is one thing Bafana have started to learn under Mashaba, it is the art of qualifying for tournaments.
The Bafana coach hopes that his squad will have the mental resilience of qualifying for tournaments repeatedly.
"We must not worry about the draw. What we should worry about is the readiness and the time we will have to prepare.
"We need to venture into the unknown with oomph and courage because we've got the players to see us through these tournaments," Mashaba said.
It's time for a shake-up - Mashaba
Bafana Bafana coach Shakes Mashaba says the emphasis needs to shift from just qualifying for tournaments to a realistic mindset of winning tournaments.
Bafana have a three-pronged qualifying programme which includes the World Cup, the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations and next year's African Nations Championship. Those are goals that Mashaba thinks are achievable.
It is too early to say whether Bafana's Afcon qualification is in jeopardy after their drab goalless draw against Gambia last month, but they made their task all the more tougher in a qualification phase where only group winners go through.
Mashaba is not getting ahead of himself but he is aware of the importance of having higher ambitions.
That was the case leading into this year's Afcon tournament and Bafana bombed out in the first round.
"We need to win some of these major tournaments. We need to stop saying, 'Let's go to the quarterfinals and the semifinals'.
"You look at Orlando Pirates now and they are nearly in the [Confederation Cup] semifinals. Once they get into the semifinals, anything is possible because they will take so much confidence into those matches. Anything can happen from that point onwards," Mashaba said.
"When Pirates won the Champions League in 1995, it had a knock-on effect for the national team the following year in the Afcon tournament.
"When the clubs do well, then it starts to reflect positively on the national team. More of our teams need to venture into the continent and aim to do well because it will make our lives easier in the national team set-up."
Having been paired with Angola in their road to the 2018 World Cup, it is one they will be expected to navigate without much difficulty. If there is one thing Bafana have started to learn under Mashaba, it is the art of qualifying for tournaments.
The Bafana coach hopes that his squad will have the mental resilience of qualifying for tournaments repeatedly.
"We must not worry about the draw. What we should worry about is the readiness and the time we will have to prepare.
"We need to venture into the unknown with oomph and courage because we've got the players to see us through these tournaments," Mashaba said.
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