‘I'm sorry that I've cost the national team the three points and the three goals’ - Kaizer Chiefs legend Itumeleng Khune comments on Teboho Mokoena's suspension saga as Bafana Bafana face possible punishment

As Bafana Bafana cross their fingers over the possibility of deductions of World Cup qualifying points, former Kaizer Chiefs goalkeeper Itumeleng Khune has called for those responsible to take responsibility and apologise over the Teboho Mokoena suspension saga.

South Africa could have their points reduced after the Mamelodi Sundowns star was fielded against Lesotho at a time he had accumulated two yellow cards.

The saga reminds Khune of almost a similar issue they faced in their Africa Cup of Nations qualification campaign in 2011.

Khune said, after a draw against Sierra Leone, they thought they had sealed themselves a slot in AFCON, only for it to turn out later that they would not proceed to the continental finals owing to a technicality in the qualification criteria.

Then, although Bafana had equal points - nine from six games - with Niger and Sierra Leone and enjoyed a superior goal difference, they thought they would proceed to Afcon. However, it later emerged that goal difference would not be used, and rather head-to-head results were used to determine who would proceed.

As Niger grabbed the Afcon slot, Khune and his teammates were left frustrated and hurt.

“When we were playing AFCON qualifiers, I remember we thought we were left with one game. We needed a draw. We celebrated in Nelspruit thinking that we had qualified only to find out someone from SAFA ignored the email from CAF or from FIFA stating that head-to-head means you can't qualify," Khune told Soccer Laduma.

"I'm even having goosebumps now because I'm becoming emotional because of such things. You know, as a federation, you should request such things upfront. You should know, and you should let us as players know before stepping onto the field that there's a possibility that this might happen or that this might not happen.

"Same thing that is happening right now, being deducted three points and three goals after so much hard work that was put in; someone must be held accountable. Because we can't keep on taking 10 steps forward and taking 20 steps backward. Someone must be accountable, and someone must come out and say to the nation, "I'm sorry that I've cost the national team the three points and the three goals'," the former Bafana star concluded.

Although they won against Lesotho and Benin and consolidated their position at the top of Group C, the Bafana victories have been overshadowed by the Mokoena saga.

Mokoena played against Lesotho, and after the defeat, the landlocked country pointed out an issue: the Sundowns star was not supposed to play.

Hugo Broos, who has made it clear that he would not comment on the issue, dropped Mokoena when he named the starting XI for the Benin game.

The group rivals should be salivating at the prospect of Bafana getting their points reduced. Currently, South Africa lead with a five-point gap, Benin and Rwanda have eight, and Nigeria have seven.

Should Broos' side suffer because of the Mokoena saga, it means the Bafana rivals will be handed big boosts in the qualification process.

When the campaign resumes later in the year, Bafana will face Lesotho away, before a home match against the Super Eagles in September. In October the 1996 Afcon winners will play Zimbabwe away before hosting Rwanda.