'You can't do that against Nigeria' - Bafana Bafana coach explains why Mofokeng started v Lesotho

Bafana Bafana head coach Hugo Broos has revealed why he carefully chose the right match to hand Relebohile Mofokeng his full debut, stressing that such opportunities are not given in high-pressure games against top sides like Nigeria.

The Orlando Pirates forward went the distance on Friday evening as South Africa defeated Lesotho 2-0 in a 2026 World Cup qualifying match. 

Prior to the matchday five fixture against Lesotho, the 20-year-old's five previous caps for the Bafana Bafana were off the bench.

In his first call-up to the national team for a competitive fixture, Mofokeng was an unused substitute as Nigeria and South Africa shared the spoils with a 1-1 draw in Uyo back in June. 

Starting Relebohile Mofokeng turned out to be a masterstroke by Broos, with the player causing constant problems for Lesotho and marking his fine performance by scoring in the 60th minute.

Broos highlighted the pressure that comes with handing opportunities to young players, acknowledging that poor performances could quickly spark public criticism.

Speaking to reporters at the post-match press conference on Friday evening, Broos explained: "I think this game was the right moment for Rele, he played a very good game and this is what we need, when you put a young guy in the team, as a coach, you have to always think they can succeed.

"If he doesn’t, can you imagine he played a bad game, then everyone would say ‘ya, ya, ya maybe it’s too soon, maybe he’s not so good, blah, blah, blah’. So you have to help the player with that."

The former Cameroon coach pointed out that Nigeria, with their quality and intensity, are not the kind of opponents where young players should be tested for the first time.

"I think I did that with Rele and I did that today with Jayden too, for me, Jayden also played a very good game – but this was also an opponent to do that.

"You can’t do that against Nigeria, or maybe for the first time, in Benin because those are different games."

Ifeanyi Emmanuel 

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