Hugo Broos has named Mamelodi Sundowns talisman Themba Zwane as the interim Bafana Bafana captain ahead of Friday's 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier at home against Uganda.
Bafana will host The Cranes at the Orlando Stadium where Zwane will lead out the side before he takes the same responsibility away to South Sudan next week Tuesday.
Zwane steps up as skipper in the absence of Bafana captain and number one goalkeeper Ronwen Williams. The Masandawana goalie recently went under the knife and has been replaced by Orlando Pirates’ Sipho Chaine in the Bafana goalkeeping ranks.
‘Mshishi’, as he is affectionately known, is not new to this leadership role as he captains Sundowns assisted by a group of vice skippers including Williams and Teboho Mokoena.
Zwane remains the oldest player in the current Bafana squad after he celebrated his 35th birthday last month. However, he has established himself a key member of the squad, keeping the younger players at bay.
In the process to appoint Zwane as skipper, Broos had a chat with him, stating that “it is not so easy to be a captain when you have such a good captain as Ronwen, He had to be ready for it”.
Assistant coach Helman Mkhalele was also involved in the decision to hand the veteran midfielder the armband as Zwane marks a decade since making Bafana debut in 2014.
Zwane’s journey with the national team has not been a steadfast one as he has often fallen out of favour with previous coaches and was overlooked by Broos when he arrived in 2021.
However, given ‘Mshishi’s’ scintillating performances, Broos changed his tone about the Tembisa-born star.
Bafana are expected to play in decently packed Orlando Stadium this Friday where the match is scheduled to kick-off at 18:00.
A masterclass in composure, courtesy of Themba Zwane. 🇿🇦⚽#TotalEnergiesAFCON2023 pic.twitter.com/RPlv22Wrsy
— CAF_Online (@CAF_Online) August 15, 2024
