Mkhalele Assures Mbokazi Incident Resolved Ahead of AFCON Challenge

Bafana Bafana Assistant Coach Helman Mkhalele Confirms Resolution of Mbokazi Issue

Mbokazi arrived in camp on Wednesday after missing his flight from Durban to Johannesburg to join Bafana Bafana at the University of Pretoria’s High Performance Centre, where the team is preparing for the upcoming Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Morocco later this month.

The defender had received a few days off following his contribution to Orlando Pirates' victory over Marumo Gallants in the Carling Knockout Cup at Peter Mokaba Stadium last Saturday. However, his belated arrival drew significant criticism from national team coach Hugo Broos.

Broos publicly criticized Mbokazi for his tardiness, suggesting that it was unacceptable, though his comments were later perceived as inappropriate. Political parties, including the UDM, reacted strongly, lodging a formal complaint with the South African Human Rights Commission that Wednesday.

Mkhalele stated, “I won’t go into each and every point, but I can say that the issue has been resolved. It was important for us to deal with it properly so that we can continue with our preparations. The issue with Mbokazi has been settled.”

Additionally, Broos expressed discontent with Mbokazi’s agent, Basia Michaels, concerning the player's impending transfer from Orlando Pirates to MLS club Chicago Fire, which is slated for completion after AFCON in January. Broos questioned the agent's decisions, notably disparaging remarks regarding the MLS.

As for their AFCON campaign, Bafana Bafana find themselves in Group B along with Egypt, Angola, and Zimbabwe. Their tournament debut will be against Angola in Marrakech on December 22.

Mkhalele emphasized the necessity of starting strong, stating, “We will work hard to make sure that we win our first game. We can draw inspiration from 1996. Back then, we were considered to be in a group of death, but we made sure we won our opening match against Cameroon.”

“We will approach this tournament with the same attitude. Egypt will be a tough opponent, but we are not underestimating the other teams. Given the quality in our group, it is important that we win our first game and then build momentum by trying to win the remaining matches.”