Baxter bemoans Bafana Bafana injury woes

Bafana Bafana coach Stuart Baxter has admitted to feeling frustration after the team was rocked by another injury blow on the eve of their AFCON qualifier against the Seychelles.

Baxter had called up Sundowns fullback Thapelo Morena in the hope that his pace would add an extra dimension to a Bafana attack that was unable to break down Libya in their last qualifying match.

Morena and Orlando Pirates winger Vincent Pule are late injury withdrawals from a squad already missing Bongani Zungu and Themba Zwane.

We've already got Bongani Zungu and Themba Zwane out we've got Keagan Dolly out and then you bring in a Morena who I thought really was perfect for this game. And then he pulls a hamstring Baxter said after training Steyn City School in Fourways, Johannesburg.

And then you've also got Vincent Pule who's got a bad one. The scans showed that he's got damage on is cruciate ligament. So it isn't just a kick as people might have first thought.

Those were two withdrawals that caused a little bit of concern.

But the lads we've brought in - Mkhize will arrive later and Lorch is here - will add cover.

The other one not here is Dino Ndlovu. His flight was cancelled in Hong Kong. He very professionally sent me a video of the board where it was actually saying in Chinese and then it flicked over that he was delayed.

So that's not ideal either - he's only going to have two days' preparation.

But again we've got Percy Tau who can play No.9 - we've got the big lad [Lebo Mothiba] who's looking very good.

Baxter is focused on using his player's athleticism to out-pace the Seychelles who have shipped eight goals in just two qualifying games so far.

Baxter would add:

And I want us to play a very mobile game. I think you saw that this morning [in training] - we were practicing playing in pockets and getting fullbacks high and having plenty of movement and speed on the ball.

Which is why I'm training here [at Steyn City]. Because they speed on the ball of the surface is more than some of the heavier pitches.

South Africa meet the Seychelles at the FNB Stadium on October 13 before travelling to Victoria to play the return fixture just three days later.

Tags: AfconBafana BafanaSoccerStuart Baxter

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