Broos to meet Ntseki over his comments about Chiefs players

Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos intends to meet with his Kaizer Chiefs counterpart Molefi Ntseki to explain his controversial statement that Amakhosi players not good for the national team.

Despite his rather tendentious assertion about Chiefs players not deserving to be in the Bafana squad at the moment, Broos was forced to backtrack on his statement and has now called up Amakhosi's Pule Mmodi as a replacement for injured Themba Zwane of Mamelodi Sundowns to form part of the squad currently in camp  preparing to face Namibia and Congo DR  in friendlies on Saturday and Tuesday, both at Orlando Stadium.

"After the game against Congo DR I will go to Belgium for two weeks, after that I will contact Ntseki because I know him very well. My first idea was to have him as my assistant, but it didn't work, so then came Helman whom I am very happy with, don't misunderstand me,'' Ntseki said in a press conference at FNB Stadium on Monday.

"I know that he [Ntseki] is upset because I said that [his] players don't deserve  now, currently, to be Bafana Bafana players because of their current performances. I didn't say he hasn't changed anything."

Broos couldn't answer why he called up Mmodi if Chiefs players don't deserve to play for Bafana but surprisingly stood by his previous statement, albeit insisting he didn't say Ntseki hasn't changed anything. 

"I am fully responsible for what I said last Wednesday when I announced the 23 players [that'll face Namibia and Congo DR] about the players of Kaizer Chiefs,'' noted the Bafana coach.

"When I said they didn't deserve to be in the national team, I didn't mean they don't have the skills but I meant that the performances are not [good] enough for them to be in the Bafana team. I don't think I said something wrong."

Meanwhile, midfielders Teboho Mokoena and Luke Re Loux have also been withdrawn from the squad due to injuries, with Mlungisi Mbunjana and Siphephelo Sithole replacing them.

On the other hand, in-form Burnley striker Lyle Foster and Percy Tau of Egyptian giants Al Ahly were the only two foreign-based players who had already arrived by Monday, with the rest expected on Tuesday morning. The game against Namibia kicks off at 3pm, while the DR Congo one starts at 6pm.