South African Football Association (SAFA) president, Danny Jordaan has confirmed that with Chicago Fire defender Mbekezeli Mbokazi fit for the next camp, the competition for places just got fiercer.

The Injury That Kept a Standout Out

Mbokazi, better known as TLB, was one of the stars of Bafana Bafana’s World Cup campaign, where they were knocked out in the round of 32.

Then injury struck when he returned to Chicago Fire, and he missed Pitso Mosimane’s first camp in September. Now he is back, and he is starting for his club again.

Bafana Did Not Miss a Beat

Mbokazi’s absence was barely felt. Olwethu Makhanya and Ime Okon impressed against Guinea and Eritrea, while Lebone Seema played well against Egypt. Those performances have given Mosimane options, and they have made the back line more competitive than ever.

Jordaan: “A Good Problem to Have”

Jordaan says he is delighted with the news. Speaking at a media conference at the weekend, he said Mbokazi’s return is good news.

“We hope that Mbokazi will be fit, and will be back,” said Jordaan. “I think it will give coach Pitso a good problem because he has many high-quality defenders, which now will include Mbokazi as well as other players who were injured and are returning to full fitness.

“We are all looking forward to a wonderful match in November at Orlando Stadium.”

He also made clear that the bigger goal is far larger than one fixture: “Bafana must qualify for the World Cup. Those are the long-term objectives of what we want to achieve.”

What Comes Next

Bafana return to action with back-to-back African Cup of Nations qualifiers against Kenya in early November. Mosimane is expected to announce his preliminary squad this week, and Mbokazi’s return will be one of the first names everyone is watching.

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