Eric Chelle says he can’t understand why FIFA haven’t ruled against South Africa for fielding suspended Teboho Mokoena in a World Cup qualifier in March.
The Super Eagles face Bafana at the Free State Stadium on Tuesday with their World Cup qualification hopes hanging by a thread.
While Bafana top Group C with 16 points, with three games to play, Chelle’s team are down in third with 10 points.
Bafana fielded Mokoena in a qualifier earlier this year, despite the Sundowns midfielder having been suspended for picking up two yellow cards.
FIFA has yet to make a ruling on the matter, and Chelle admits it is a distraction heading into their upcoming encounter.
Bafana could qualify for the World Cup in 2026 if they beat Nigeria and second-place Benin fail to beat Lesotho.
Ahead of the midweek game, the Super Eagles boss said in the Citizen: “I’m just the coach, I lead my team, in terms of the yellow card, there’s an organisation whose name it’s FIFA, they need to manage it.
“My problem is my players first because they are focused. They want to play a great game here and I feel like we have to think about our game, not about what happens around the game.
“But the reality if I can tell you, I think FIFA needs to manage it quickly.”