Pitso Uses Orlando Pirates, Arsenal and Barcelona to Make His Point About Benni

Bafana Bafana coach Pitso Mosimane has played down the possibility of Kenya coach Benni McCarthy having an advantage ahead of their upcoming 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying matches.

South Africa are preparing to face Kenya in two important Group D encounters this month, with the first match scheduled to take place in Orlando next week. The two teams will then meet again in Kenya on 17 November.

Bafana currently lead the qualifying group and will be looking to strengthen their position as they continue their campaign to secure a place at the 2027 AFCON tournament.

South Africa are targeting a third consecutive appearance at the continental competition after qualifying for the 2023 and 2025 editions. Kenya, meanwhile, have already secured their place at the 2027 tournament because they are among the co-hosts of the competition.

Despite having qualified automatically, McCarthy will be eager to get positive results against his home country. The former Bafana Bafana striker knows South African football very well and has previously worked with several players who are part of the current national team setup.

His experience with Bafana could give him a better understanding of some of the players’ qualities and the team’s approach to matches. However, Mosimane does not believe that this knowledge necessarily gives the Kenyan coach an advantage.

Speaking after announcing his squad for the upcoming encounters, Mosimane explained that modern football makes it possible for coaches and technical teams to study their opponents through video analysis and other available information.

The Bafana coach used some of Europe’s biggest clubs to illustrate his point, arguing that most teams are familiar with how their opponents play but that does not mean they can easily beat them.

“I guess everybody knows how Barcelona plays, right? Everybody knows how Arsenal is playing, right? Everybody sees Bayern Munich. Everyone has got analysts, four analysts, people have got that, so they don’t know how they play? Everybody knows how you play,” Mosimane said.

He further explained that understanding an opponent’s playing style only provides information about possible patterns and what a team might try to do during a match.

“Doesn’t mean when I know how Benni plays, it means now I have an advantage. No, it just gives me a little bit of data and understanding of seeing patterns, what is most likely to come,” he added.

Mosimane also warned against assuming that teams will always follow the same approach, explaining that coaches can change their plans depending on the opposition and the circumstances of a particular match.

He used Orlando Pirates as an example, pointing out that knowing how the Soweto giants usually play does not necessarily prepare an opponent for the challenge of facing them at Orlando Stadium.

“And what if they have changed the plan, right? Everybody knows how Pirates plays until you get to Orlando Stadium, right? So, it’s the way it is in football,” he concluded.

The upcoming fixtures will therefore provide an interesting test for both coaches. McCarthy will know several of the Bafana players, but Mosimane believes the result will ultimately depend on how the teams perform rather than what their coaches already know about each other.

For South Africa, the immediate objective will be to maintain their position at the top of Group D and take another important step towards qualifying for the 2027 AFCON tournament.

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