Bafana Bafana head coach Hugo Broos has expressed his frustration regarding the challenges faced by South African players in securing moves to European clubs, specifically pointing to Teboho Mokoena’s situation.
Mokoena, who had a standout performance during the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Côte d’Ivoire, attracted attention from European clubs. Despite this, no transfer materialised, and the midfielder instead signed a new four-year contract with Mamelodi Sundowns.
Broos emphasised that no European club is likely to pay €5 million (approximately R87 million) for a 27-year-old player like Mokoena.
Broos raised this issue while announcing the squad for Bafana Bafana’s upcoming 2025 AFCON qualifying matches against Congo Brazzaville, with the first match scheduled in Gqeberha on October 11 and the return leg in Brazzaville on October 15.
The 72-year-old mentor’s concern about the limited number of South African players playing their trade abroad is tied to his vision for improving the national team’s competitiveness.
The absence of more players competing in top European leagues can limit the growth and exposure needed for the national team to excel on the international stage.
“(Teboho) Mokoena played very good at Afcon there was interest, if it’s true they (Sundowns) asked €5 million (87 million rands) for him. Nobody will pay €5 million for Mokoena,” Broos said.
“I’m sorry but I’m expressing myself like this because he is only a South African player we don’t have for a long time a history anymore of South African players abroad.
“In other countries like Senegal, Morocco, and Cote d’Ivoire their players are playing abroad.
“We (South Africa) don’t have it anymore this is something we need.
“And we can do it, we can achieve that by having good results with the national team because you saw what happened after Afcon there was interest in South African players.
“We are good in the right direction, but we are still not there we want to be.”
The only player who managed to get an abroad move from the Bafana Bafana squad that participated in the recent Afcon is Ellias Mokwana who joined Esperance of Tunisia.