Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos had a right to be angry at Mbekezeli Mbokazi for joining camp late for the team’s preparation ahead of the all-important Africa Cup of Nations tournament starting in Morocco next Sunday.
Reading the riot act to the defender for his indiscretion was a necessary step to reinforce team discipline and is expected of any coach worth their salt. However, in registering his displeasure at Mbokazi’s agent, Basia Michaels, for securing her client a transfer from Orlando Pirates to Chicago Fire — a Major League Soccer club in the US which Broos doesn’t rate — the Belgian went off the rails with his unsavoury and sexist reference to Michaels as “a little woman who thinks she knows football”.
Broos is entitled to his views regarding Mbokazi’s move to a new team and whether it will be in the player’s professional interests. Yet for Mbokazi it might represent a life-changing career break with huge financial benefits. Given the relatively short careers in sport, it should be a decision best left to the player in this instance.
A sign of good leadership is the ability to keep a cool head and to be measured in speech and action. Broos’s statement, potentially a distraction to the team, is now the subject of an investigation by the authorities, who will make a determination on the appropriateness or legality of his comments.
But the focus for all concerned must be the battle before us, which is to win the Afcon tournament.
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.