adminCAPE TOWN — Bafana Bafana coach Gordon Igesund feels that South African footballers are a spoilt bunch, awash with money, and need to toughen up to compete with their counterparts on the continent. South Africa are hosting the African Nations Championships, which get underway this weekend, and Igesund says his country needs to take such competitions seriously.
“Sometimes I feel that in this country, the players are too spoilt because we really have world class facilities here,” said Igesund.
“There is money in our league and players are well paid, so we are a very big league compared with some of the others in Africa.
“Over the years, the Champions League hasn’t been taken that seriously before.
“I have gone on record as saying it is hugely important that Pirates went all the way to a final. National team players are able to gain experience, playing in these places. You go to certain countries and the conditions are very difficult.” The four-time league title-winning coach felt it was time the PSL’s prestige as one of Africa’s best leagues, if not the best, was translated to glory on the field.
“We understand now the importance of it. The rewards are good and the prestige is huge. To be able to say we are the best team in Africa is hugely important.
“We keep saying we have the best league in Africa, now we need to go and prove we are the best — we need to go and win a tournament like Chan.
“I don’t want to put my players under pressure, but we are hosting the tournament and we have got to go out there and put on a good performance and try and win it. “You can see that Pirates went all the way. They took it very seriously and Chiefs are going to take it seriously this time around.”
Back in 1995, Orlando Pirates went on to lift the Caf Champions League trophy, which was followed by Bafana Bafana winning the African Cup of Nations a year later.
But, until 2013, PSL club successes in Africa had been relatively few and far between with Pirates breaking the trend and going all the way to the Champions League final late last year.
Eleven trains will be set aside to transport soccer fans to the opening matches of the CHAN finals in Cape Town, Passenger Rail Agency of SA said on Monday. — Sapa.
Online Reporter