Abdeslam Ouaddou says 'I cannot tell you anything' after Relebohile Mofokeng's injury that could rule Orlando Pirates star out of Bafana Bafana's crucial World Cup qualifiers

Orlando Pirates head coach Abdeslam Ouaddou has said it is too early to judge whether Relebohile Mofokeng will be ready for Bafana Bafana's 2026 World Cup qualifiers.

The 20-year-old was stretchered off during Pirates' Carling Knockout Cup game against Siwelele, a match that Bucs won to reach the quarter-finals.

Although Ouaddou admitted he was not in a position to give full details of the injury, he said Mofokeng did well for the minutes he played.

“To be honest, for now, we just finished the game. I cannot tell you anything about Rele – I think he played one hour and did well,” Ouaddou said.

“I’m happy with what he did; we will see the issue, and we will see if he is okay or not [for Bafana Bafana], but for me, he played one hour – I don’t have much to say about that.”

Although the youngster has faced a challenging start to the season, Broos has maintained trust in him.

The forward is yet to hit the peak of his form as was witnessed last season, but the Bafana tactician said they will be patient with him and hope he rises again.

Since he was promoted to the senior team in July 2023, Mofokeng has played in 101 games, scored 18 goals, and has 22 assists for the Buccaneers.

This shows just how important he is to the Bucs' setup, and it is his performance for the Soweto giants that attracted Broos' attention, who consequently called him up for national duties.

After a points deduction which saw Bafana lose Group C's top position, the games in October are must-wins if they have to keep their World Cup qualification dream intact.

South Africa will face Zimbabwe on October 10, and four days later will be in action against Rwanda.