Zwane Sends Well-Wishes To Bafana Ahead Of Zimbabwe clash
Injured Bafana Bafana star Themba Zwane has sent his well wishes to the national team as they continue their bid to qualify for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, starting with their crucial qualifier against Zimbabwe on Friday.
Zwane, who misses out due to injury, will watch from the sidelines as South Africa take on Zimbabwe in the World Cup qualifying match at the Moses Mabhida Stadium this afternoon.
Bafana will be focused solely on securing all three points before turning their attention to Rwanda, whom they host at Mbombela Stadium on Tuesday.
Hugo Broos’ side’s qualification hopes suffered a major blow after FIFA docked them three points for fielding an ineligible player, Teboho Mokoena, in their March qualifier against Lesotho.
Mokoena had accumulated two yellow cards, which triggered a one-match suspension, but the South African Football Association (SAFA) failed to recognize it. As a result, FIFA awarded the match 3-0 to Lesotho and deducted three points from Bafana.
The sanction saw South Africa drop from first to second place in Group C, with Benin now leading the group on 14 points — the same number as Bafana — but with a superior goal difference.
“It’s going to be an interesting game, but I just want to wish the guys good luck and hopefully they’ll bring the three points home,” said Zwane, who last featured for Bafana during the 2025 AFCON qualifiers against Congo in October last year.
Zimbabwe, who include Zwane’s Mamelodi Sundowns teammate Divine Lunga in their squad, are already out of contention for World Cup qualification, sitting bottom of Group C with just four points from eight matches.
However, they are taking this clash seriously as part of their preparations for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), where they are grouped with Bafana Bafana. The tournament, to be hosted in Morocco, kicks off in December.
“We know Divine is a quality player. It will be an interesting match, but the guys have prepared well for this one. We know his strengths, but our focus is on getting the win,” Zwane added.
The Sundowns captain, who has achieved almost everything in his illustrious career, featuring at the FIFA World Cup, remains one of his biggest dreams — a goal that will only be possible if Bafana qualify for the first time since 2002.
In the African qualifiers, only the group winners automatically qualify for the FIFA World Cup in Canada, Mexico, and the USA, while the four best runners-up will advance to a play-off round for another shot at qualification.
