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South Africa Coach Pitso Mosimane Has Appealed For Katlego Mphela Support
The Mamelodi Sundowns striker scored in Bafana's 1-1 draw with Ivory Coast, following jeers and calls for his substitution from the crowd in Port Elizabeth
14-Nov-2011 3:09:00 PM
South Africa coach Pitso Mosimane has appealed to the nation to provide unwavering support to Katlego Mphela.
Bafana Bafana's third all-time leading goal scorer with 22 goals silenced his critics by getting an equaliser in the second half as Bafana fought back to draw 1-1 with Ivory Coast in the Nelson Mandela Challenge on Saturday in Port Elizabeth.
Before the interval, however, ‘Killer' was a subject of booing from the supporters, who demanded his substitution.
The Bafana coach refused to give in and it paid off when the Mamelodi Sundowns striker beat Boubacar Barry with a free kick from outside the box in the 53rd minute.
After Mphela scored, Mosimane turned around from the touchline to face the crowd and appeared to make his plea to the fans to have faith in Mphela.
During the post-match media briefing, Mosimane revealed the booing was getting to Mphela during the match but in the same breathe reminded South Africans of Mphela's firepower.
"I was pleading to the supporters to give Mphela a break. I'm pleading to South Africa that they must give Mphela a break. All the time especially in big games, everybody blames Mphela and at the end of the day who scores? He lost it, because he was not happy and I had to call him to the line to speak to him and told him that, ‘The only way to reply [to the boos] is to score'.
"We will be criticised because this is Bafana and I hope Katlego takes it positively. I take it positively when I'm criticised. It is not easy but I understand why, because I'm the head coach of Bafana," he said.
Mosimane also rued the missed chances in the game, but says there is very little he can do to solve the problem. Ultimately, Bafana players have to take the responsibility of being clinical in front of goal.
"If Ivory Coast had the chances we had, they could have buried us… When Mphela is not scoring, we don't look like scoring.
"I will make sure that the team is organised. I will make sure that the team is tactically disciplined. I will make sure that the team plays at a high level.
That's all I can do. If this team doesn't have structure I will put my head on the block and you can question me on that but don't question me on the scoring! I can't do anything about that," Mosimane added.
Bafana Bafana's third all-time leading goal scorer with 22 goals silenced his critics by getting an equaliser in the second half as Bafana fought back to draw 1-1 with Ivory Coast in the Nelson Mandela Challenge on Saturday in Port Elizabeth.
Before the interval, however, ‘Killer' was a subject of booing from the supporters, who demanded his substitution.
The Bafana coach refused to give in and it paid off when the Mamelodi Sundowns striker beat Boubacar Barry with a free kick from outside the box in the 53rd minute.
After Mphela scored, Mosimane turned around from the touchline to face the crowd and appeared to make his plea to the fans to have faith in Mphela.
During the post-match media briefing, Mosimane revealed the booing was getting to Mphela during the match but in the same breathe reminded South Africans of Mphela's firepower.
"I was pleading to the supporters to give Mphela a break. I'm pleading to South Africa that they must give Mphela a break. All the time especially in big games, everybody blames Mphela and at the end of the day who scores? He lost it, because he was not happy and I had to call him to the line to speak to him and told him that, ‘The only way to reply [to the boos] is to score'.
"We will be criticised because this is Bafana and I hope Katlego takes it positively. I take it positively when I'm criticised. It is not easy but I understand why, because I'm the head coach of Bafana," he said.
Mosimane also rued the missed chances in the game, but says there is very little he can do to solve the problem. Ultimately, Bafana players have to take the responsibility of being clinical in front of goal.
"If Ivory Coast had the chances we had, they could have buried us… When Mphela is not scoring, we don't look like scoring.
"I will make sure that the team is organised. I will make sure that the team is tactically disciplined. I will make sure that the team plays at a high level.
That's all I can do. If this team doesn't have structure I will put my head on the block and you can question me on that but don't question me on the scoring! I can't do anything about that," Mosimane added.
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