“Top Three? We Have A Long Way To Go” — Mosimane Responds To High Praise From Guinea Coach
Bafana Bafana coach Pitso Mosimane says he is humbled by Guinea coach Paulo Duarte’s assessment of South Africa as one of Africa’s top three national teams.
Duarte made the assessment after Bafana Bafana overcame Guinea in their opening 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier at Orlando Amstel Arena on Saturday. The Guinea coach accepted the result while highlighting South Africa’s quality.
Duarte placed Bafana among the three best national teams on the continent, alongside Morocco and Senegal, who faced each other at the 2025 AFCON in Morocco.
Mosimane welcomed the assessment but insisted that Bafana still have a long way to go before they can consider themselves firmly among the continent’s elite.
“If that’s his assessment, it’s humbling, but yeah, top three,” Mosimane said.
“Top three, yes, we got a bronze [in the 2024 Africa Cup of Nations]. With that, yes, right? But we have a long way to go, right?
“They (Guinea) are a good team also. We played well. We are a good team. We’re a good team.”
Bafana’s recent record against Morocco also highlights their progress on the continental stage. South Africa have faced the Atlas Lions three times in the past five years, winning two of those encounters, while Morocco won once.
One of Bafana’s most significant victories came at the 2024 AFCON, when they knocked Morocco out of the tournament.
However, Mosimane’s immediate concern after the Guinea match was the fitness of left-back Aubrey Modiba, who suffered a hamstring problem and could now be doubtful for Bafana’s final AFCON qualifier of this FIFA international break against Eritrea on Wednesday.
Modiba joins Nkosinathi Sibisi on the list of players dealing with injuries.
The Sundowns full-back was replaced by Samukelo Kabini in the second half, with the 22-year-old making a positive impact after coming off the bench by scoring Bafana’s second goal.
“Aubrey is overloaded. My full-backs were on duty on Saturday,” Mosimane added.
“Aubrey is overloaded, but we have Kabini. Kabini is younger and can take the load. This guy can run all the time.
“So Aubrey has got a tight hamstring, which is not nice for us. But at least we still have Fawaz Basadien, and we still have Kabini. Hence the 30 players.
“You can see now, people are falling off, and we’ve just played one match. I know it’s not easy for the Football Association to give me 30 players, but if we want to be at that level and get the results, this is the reality.
“So I don’t call 30 players because I choose to call 30.”
