The Bafana Bafana coach, Hugo Broos, is impressed by the young players, Relebohile Mofokeng and Jayden Adams, who are already showing that their skulls are strong.
Mofokeng of Orlando Pirates and Adams of Mamelodi Sundowns, are doing well in the teams these days. Mofokeng (21) recently scored three goals for Pirates to beat TS Galaxy 6-0 in the recent Betway Premiership and is one of the best players in scoring and creating goals in this league.
Adams (24) has once again become one of the key players in the Brazilians who advanced to the semi-finals of the Caf Champions League by defeating Stade Malien of Mali, in the quarterfinals. He has returned to the level that led him to catch the eye of the Sundowns coaches.
Both are in the national team that will play two friendly matches against Panama. The first will be held at Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban, on Friday at 7 pm, the second will be played at DHL Stadium, Cape Town, on Tuesday.
“Rele is in good shape. There was a time when he was a little confused. He quickly became famous when he was young. There were things that disturbed him until he forgot to play football, but I don’t blame him because that is normal for a young player,” said Broos.
“This season we’ve seen him step up and now he’s the Rele that everyone wants to see. He’s playing more in midfield, which I think is where his future lies.
“He doesn’t need to sit on the sidelines, he should be in the middle where he will be able to show his intelligence, use the spaces and pass. This is where he does well and that is where he will play for Bafana Bafana as well.”
Broos also praised Adams, who he saw has grown a lot after facing challenges including skipping a jersey. In 2024, the coach kicked Adams out of camp accusing him of misconduct. After that, it turned out that he arrived late, which is the same as when Mbokazi and Broos cheated last year.
“The same thing happened to Jayden and Mbokazi (Mbekezeli). When you’re young and you become famous, it’s not easy to resist that. Jayden also needed to find himself. Maybe when he joined Sundowns he thought he was done with everything but – later on – he found himself sitting outside watching the games,” said Broos.
“I think he learned a lot during that time. If you look at him now, he has matured mentally and his ability is still there. I am very happy for him because everyone knows he is a good player and I think he can help us a lot.”