While the Free State has no club in the top-flight ranks, it prides itself in having two players in the 23-man senior Bafana Bafana squad. Hugo Broos, head coach, included the talented duo Teboho Mokoena and Mothobi Mvala, both Mamelodi Sundowns players, in the team for the home and away Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers against Liberia.
The third Free Stater, Pule Mmoodi of Golden Arrows, has been left out after initially being selected for the preliminary 35-men squad.
Bafana Bafana will host the West African nation match on Friday (24/03) at the Orlando Stadium in Soweto at 18:00, with the return fixture on Tuesday (28/03) in the Liberian capital of Monrovia at 18:00 (South African time).
South Africa is pressured to qualify for the final of the continental championship, having last reached that stage in 2019. South Africa last won this championship in 1996 under the guidance of legendary mentor Clive Barker.
The forthcoming final of the African Cup of Nations will be staged in Ivory Coast. Mokoena and Mvala, from Bethlehem and Theunissen, have been included in the final squad because of their current impressive form that saw Sundowns dominate in the group stage of the CAF Championship League and the domestic DStv Premiership.
Both players are graduates of the national U23 men’s team.
The pair received first call-ups to the senior national team in 2017 under former SuperSport United mentor Stuart Baxter. This was for the 2018 African Nations Championship qualifiers. Both Mokoena and Mvala hope they remain injury-free to help steer Bafana Bafana to the finals.
