KAIZER Chiefs’ five-man complement of players had not reported to the Bafana Bafana camp for this month’s African Nations Championship by late yesterday, and a mysterious posting on Amakhosi’s official Twitter account suggested a showdown might be looming.
Bafana players assembled at a hotel near OR Tambo yesterday, and were to fly today to Cape Town, where Bafana are based for the group stages of the January 11 to February 1 tournament.
The Chiefs players – national captain Itumeleng Khune and Siphiwe Tshabalala, Bernard Parker, Tsepo Masilela and Tefu Mashamaite – had not arrived for camp by late yesterday afternoon, and nor had players from Bidvest Wits.
Amakhosi Tweeted on their official account: “Chan: We have written a letter to Safa indicating we will release the called-up players after the Sundowns game on the 23rd of January.”
Chiefs play Mamelodi Sundowns in a PSL fixture at Loftus on January 23. Yet all players from Sundowns – Bryce Moon, Tebogo Langerman, Hlompho Kekana, Jabulani Shongwe and Katlego Mashego – had reported for duty.
Bafana coach Gordon Igesund, in Cape Town already yesterday ahead of his squad’s arrival, fumed that no compromise had been reached with Chiefs for their players to arrive late.
“I’m expecting all the players called up to report to camp.
“There’s no such thing as a compromise. Most of the players have arrived – all the Sundowns players. And I’m looking forward to starting my preparations.
“Chiefs and Sundowns were part of an agreement their players would be released for the Chan, made at a meeting between the PSL and Safa on December 23.
“That’s why the Sundowns-Chiefs game was moved to January 23 from January 28, and it was agreed players from those clubs would be in camp, then released to take part in that PSL game, and then come back. So the reports I’ve read now about Chiefs players coming into camp after the 23rd, I will certainly not agree with that.
“If some players do not turn up, Safa will have to deal with that.
“The players are coming in today , they’re assembling as a unit and then tomorrow morning they will go to the Institute for Sport Research in Pretoria to have their medicals. After that they have their flight to Cape Town.”
The Sundowns-Chiefs game was rescheduled for a rest period in the Chan between the group and knockout phase. The PSL wanted Amakhosi to honour the fixture this month to help alleviate a congested schedule.
Igesund said the only players he was instructed to not select for Chan were those from clubs involved in three PSL fixtures: Orlando Pirates vs SuperSport United (January 18), AmaZulu vs Pirates (January 23) and Pirates vs Ajax Cape Town (January 27).
The coach said he would not have agreed to a compromise that would have seen him saddled with having just 18 players for the group stages, and then having to replace players in the knockout stages with late-arriving Chiefs stars.
Chiefs’ football manager, Bobby Motaung, could not be reached for comment.
Clubs skip Bafana camp
Bafana players assembled at a hotel near OR Tambo yesterday, and were to fly today to Cape Town, where Bafana are based for the group stages of the January 11 to February 1 tournament.
The Chiefs players – national captain Itumeleng Khune and Siphiwe Tshabalala, Bernard Parker, Tsepo Masilela and Tefu Mashamaite – had not arrived for camp by late yesterday afternoon, and nor had players from Bidvest Wits.
Amakhosi Tweeted on their official account: “Chan: We have written a letter to Safa indicating we will release the called-up players after the Sundowns game on the 23rd of January.”
Chiefs play Mamelodi Sundowns in a PSL fixture at Loftus on January 23. Yet all players from Sundowns – Bryce Moon, Tebogo Langerman, Hlompho Kekana, Jabulani Shongwe and Katlego Mashego – had reported for duty.
Bafana coach Gordon Igesund, in Cape Town already yesterday ahead of his squad’s arrival, fumed that no compromise had been reached with Chiefs for their players to arrive late.
“I’m expecting all the players called up to report to camp.
“There’s no such thing as a compromise. Most of the players have arrived – all the Sundowns players. And I’m looking forward to starting my preparations.
“Chiefs and Sundowns were part of an agreement their players would be released for the Chan, made at a meeting between the PSL and Safa on December 23.
“That’s why the Sundowns-Chiefs game was moved to January 23 from January 28, and it was agreed players from those clubs would be in camp, then released to take part in that PSL game, and then come back. So the reports I’ve read now about Chiefs players coming into camp after the 23rd, I will certainly not agree with that.
“If some players do not turn up, Safa will have to deal with that.
“The players are coming in today , they’re assembling as a unit and then tomorrow morning they will go to the Institute for Sport Research in Pretoria to have their medicals. After that they have their flight to Cape Town.”
The Sundowns-Chiefs game was rescheduled for a rest period in the Chan between the group and knockout phase. The PSL wanted Amakhosi to honour the fixture this month to help alleviate a congested schedule.
Igesund said the only players he was instructed to not select for Chan were those from clubs involved in three PSL fixtures: Orlando Pirates vs SuperSport United (January 18), AmaZulu vs Pirates (January 23) and Pirates vs Ajax Cape Town (January 27).
The coach said he would not have agreed to a compromise that would have seen him saddled with having just 18 players for the group stages, and then having to replace players in the knockout stages with late-arriving Chiefs stars.
Chiefs’ football manager, Bobby Motaung, could not be reached for comment.
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