Pitso Mosimane will officially begin his second stint as Bafana Bafana head coach when South Africa host Guinea in their opening 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying match at Orlando Stadium in Johannesburg on Saturday.
Kick-off is scheduled for 15:00.
Mosimane took charge of the national team 25 days ago and has since been working to rebuild his technical setup and establish the direction he wants Bafana Bafana to take.
Speaking ahead of the team’s matchday-minus-one training session at the Orlando Amstel Arena on Friday afternoon, Mosimane acknowledged the challenges of inheriting a squad that has gone through several tactical changes in recent matches.
The reality is where’s the team and how was the team playing,” Mosimane said.
The Bafana coach pointed to the different formations used by the team in their last few matches, including 3-5-2, 4-3-3 and 4-2-3-1, saying it was difficult to immediately define a single tactical direction.
He also revealed that he had to rebuild parts of his technical team after taking over.
I didn’t take anybody out. No one was left when I came. Everybody left. From the trainer to an analyst. They left. There was no one,” he said.
Mosimane, however, stressed that he does not want to use the circumstances as an excuse, with the immediate priority being to secure three points against Guinea.
I’m expected not to come with excuses here,” he said. “What works is trying to get the three points and try and win because Guinea is the main rivalry. We all know that.”
The coach also warned against underestimating any of the teams in the qualifying group, pointing to the changing landscape of African football and the number of players from traditionally smaller footballing nations competing at a high level abroad.
It is not a jolly ride. It’s going to be tough. We know that they’re not going to allow us to win. We have to push, we have to fight and then we have to come wave to wave and wave and wave,” Mosimane said.
While the immediate objective is qualification, Mosimane made it clear that his ambitions extend beyond simply reaching the tournament.
To win a cup. I’m not saying I’m going to win it. I want to win it. And that’s why I’m here,” he said. “You can’t win the cup when you don’t qualify. I mean, you know the levels and the steps that you need to do to get to win the cup.”
Bafana captain and goalkeeper Ronwen Williams echoed Mosimane’s emphasis on taking each match seriously, saying the team can only control its own performances.
Control what we can and that is our performances. What we want to achieve,” Williams said.
Williams also pointed to recent results in African football as evidence that there are few straightforward matches in the qualifiers.
If you look at African football now there’s no easy opponent. There’s lots at stake. Everyone wants to be at AFCON,” he said.
The captain called on South African supporters to fill Orlando Stadium for Mosimane’s return to the national team dugout.
To all the South African loving fans, please come out and support the team. Show love. Show up. Let’s fill the stadium,” Williams said.
“Let’s give our coach the warm welcome that he deserves. He’s done amazing work for South African football, African football. So let it be a nice spectacle for us all and let’s celebrate tomorrow together.”
Mosimane’s return comes with early concerns over injuries to Lebohang Maboe and Nkosinathi Sibisi, but Bafana will be looking to start their qualifying campaign with maximum points.
After Guinea, South Africa travel to Cairo to face Eritrea at the Al-Salam Stadium on Wednesday, 30 September, before concluding their upcoming international schedule with a friendly against Egypt at Cairo International Stadium on 4 October.