Sekhukhune United head coach Eric Tinkler has admitted he wasn’t surprised by the exclusion of his players from Hugo Broos’s latest Bafana Bafana selection.
South Africa are gearing up for crucial World Cup qualifiers, facing Lesotho on Friday and Nigeria the following Tuesday.
The national squad features a heavy presence from domestic giants Orlando Pirates and Mamelodi Sundowns, with additional representation from Siwelele, TS Galaxy and Kaizer Chiefs.
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While Sekhukhune players missed out this time, Tinkler remains focused on club performance, suggesting national recognition will come with consistent results.
Broos recently commended Tinkler’s Betyway Premiership table toppers for playing good football this season but still decided against including any of the Sekhukhune players in his set-up.
Tinkler said on FARPost: “I am not surprised because the national team is doing well. So, if the national team is doing well, why do you have to chop and change players?
“You have to allow those players to prove why they are doing well. If obviously the form goes down, then you start looking at other players.
“For me, it’s not a surprise whether they have selected [Sekhukhune United players], the squad has done pretty well.”
On the comments made by Broos, the former Cape Town City boss added: “I don’t know. Maybe I don’t entirely agree. Like I said, you’ve got to be better on the ball. I still think there is a lot to improve in terms of how we play.”