INGWEVU yomqeqeshi uGordon Igesund, owake wacija neqembu lesizwe lakuleli, iBafana Bafana, ifuna likholwe ukuthi lingawumdla umhlanganiso emqhudelwaneni i-Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon).
IBafana ngelinye lamazwe angu-32 azobanga indebe ye-Afcon enkulu kunazo zonke ebholeni lamazwe e-Afrika, e-Ivory Coast kusukela ngoJanuwari 13 kuya kuFebhuwari 11.
Iboshelwe kuGroup E eqhathwe kuyo neMali, Tunisia neNamibia. IBafana izovula neMali ngoJanuwari 16 e-Amadou Gon Coulibaly Stadium ngo-8 ebusuku.
Ngaphambi kokufulathela iNingizimu Afrika, abafana bakaHugo Broos, bazokhempa eStellenbosch, badlale umdlalo wobungani neLesotho 10. Bazohamba ngo-Januwari 11.
U-Igesund, owayeqeqesha iBafana kwi-Afcon ka-2013 eMzansi, uthe kumele lizethembe iqembu lesizwe.
“Sihle isikwati esiqokiwe. Mhlawumbe babili noma bathathu abadlali abasalile abebengafakwa. Kodwa-ke umqeqeshi uqoka isikwati ngokubheka indlela afuna ukudlala ngayo. Bengingathanda ukubona abanye abadlali abanesipiliyoni eqenjini,” kusho u-Igesund.
“Ngesikwati esinaso kufanele sikholwe wukuthi singawuwina umqhudelwano. Abadlali kufanele bakholwe wukuthi bazoyiwina i-Afcon, kumele bazethembe, sibe nesibindi.
Asikwazi ukuya kwi-Afcon singazethembi. Ngokwami sineqembu eliqinile. Kufanele sibe nesibindi ngoba nawo amaqembu esizodlala nawo akhathezekile ngathi.”
KuGroup E, iBafana izobhekana namaqembu enomlando nawo. Ngesikhathi iqembu lalapha liwina i-Afcon ngo-1996 lashaya iTunisia ngo 2-0 kowamanqamu. Ku-Afcon ka-2013, iMali yayikhipha iBafana kuma-quarterfinal sekushaywa amaphenathi, eMoses Mabhida Stadium, eThekwini.
INamibia ayikaze iyehlule iBafana emidlalweni eyisishiyagalolunye esiyidlalile. IBafana iwine eyisihlanu, zadlala ngokulingana kwemine.
“Iqoqo lethu kalinzima. IMali ihlala iyiqembu elinzima. Ngiyakhumbula isikhipha emuva kokuthi sikade sihamba phambili ngo 1-0 isikhathi eside, sagcina sihlulwe kumaphenathi.
INamibia ngikholwa wukuthi wonke amaqembu azotapa kuyona amaphuzu kuleli qoqo. Okumele sikwenze wukuqinisekisa ukuthi sithola okungenani iphuzu kwiMali, nakwiTunisia, siwine kwiNamibia. Lokho kuyosibeka ebuhleni.
Ngimfisela okuhle umqeqeshi futhi ngiyaleseka iqembu. Sonke kumele sileseke iqembu, sibe nemicabango emihle ngalo ukuze lizophumelela,” kusho u-Igesund.
Kweminye imidlalo yesigaba samaqoqo, iBafana izobhekana neNamibia ngoJanuwari 21, ivale neTunisia ngoJanuwari 24.