Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos does not believe Mbekezeli Mbokazi’s transfer to Chicago Fire is the right move for him at this stage of his career, criticising the players’ agent Basia Michaels.
Mbokazi secured a transfer to the Major Soccer League in a deal said to be worth $3 million (R50 million) and played his last match for Pirates in the Carling Knockout Cup final.
However, while many in South Africa have seen it as a major stepping stone for the Orlando Pirates defender, who only made his senior debut last season, Broos does not believe Mbokazi and his representatives made the right decision.
Broos, who previously hailed Mbokazi as one of the brightest prospects in South Africa, stating he has what it takes to move to Europe, insisted Mbokazi and his agent should have waited for a better move after upcoming Africa Cup of Nations and the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
“I think, no [it’s not a good move]. What is he going to do in Chicago?” Broos stated on Monday after slating the defender for arriving late in camp.
“It’s not even a cup team in America. If my info is right, they told me he’s playing MLS2, at the second team of Chicago – if it’s true, I don’t know I will ask him when I see him. That is even worse.
“But I know what happened, a woman who is his agent and think she knows football is doing what many agents are doing and thinking ‘how much can I get’. If she is a little bit clever, she knows there is AFCON and next year it’s World Cup, that there will be other teams, better for his career, to go to and not to Chicago.
“What is going to do there alone there in a big city like that. So no, I don’t think it’s a good choice.”
Bafana have gathered at the High Performance Centre in Pretoria where they will prepare for the AFCON until 17 December when they will travel to Morocco. They will face Ghana’s CHAN squad on 16 December and then prepare for their AFCON opener against Angola on 22 December.