Foster back in the fold as Broos names Bafana squad for 2026 World Cup qualifiers

JOHANNESBURG - Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos has named his final 23-man squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers against Nigeria and Zimbabwe.

South Africa sit second in Group C and are away to the Super Eagles on 7 June before hosting the Warriors four days later at Free State Stadium.

Lyle Foster is back in the fold for the first time since last year.

He missed the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations after the recurrence of a mental health issue.

"His health problem is solved, that was the problem," the 72-year-old said on SABC Sport where he unveiled his final squad selection for the games.

"And I know I was also very angry at certain moments because from England we get the news that Lyle [Foster] was not ready. Lyle had a mental problem and so on and so on, and so then he started playing with the team [Burnley]. So we had contact again with England and they said that, yeah, he’s not ready.

"And also Lyle wrote us a letter that he didn’t want to go with us to AFCON because he was not ready. That’s the reason why Lyle was not with us in Ivory Coast. So, after that, for March I took again contact and again they told me 'no'. It’s better that you don’t call him for the moment because he’s not really 100%, still not really 100%, and that’s why he wasn’t with us in March.

"But he still played. He always played every game for Burnley, so it was not easy to accept that. But OK, I followed let’s say the medical reasons why I couldn’t take him but now everything was OK. I called him and we had a good chat. I called [Vincent] Kompany, we had a good chat, so there are no problems anymore. And that’s the reason why Lyle is now again with us."

Former Kaizer Chiefs player, Siyabonga Ngezana, receives his first call-up after being named in the Superliga Team of the Season.

That recognition comes after an impressive debut campaign with Romanian club, Steaua.

"We tried to have him with us in March [for the FIFA Series games against Andorra and Algeria] but there were some administrative problems and he couldn’t leave Romania. Now he is again there with us. I’m very happy with him. He had a tremendous, fantastic season in Romania. He was chosen several times as the player of the month. It’s up to him now to take his chance."

The attacking selections have come under scrutiny after Broos snubbed DStv Premiership Golden Boot winner, Tshegofatso Mabasa.

The Orlando Pirates forward netted 16 league goals but will watch the games from home after Iqraam Rayners and Foster were selected to be the Belgian coach’s striking options.

"We had a bad experience with Mabasa two years ago," Broos said of the attacker's previous call-ups. "The last time he was with us, it was a disaster. I had to change him after 35 minutes and everybody said it was a scandal. Mabasa didn’t reach the level he had to reach for the national team. He’s not the same player anymore. But you see what happened between January and the last game he played for Bafana two years ago. That was not good."

In the first two games of qualifying, South Africa beat Benin 2-1 at home before suffering a surprise 2-0 loss away to Rwanda.

With the coach looking to qualify Bafana for a first World Cup since France 1998, he is aiming to collect a minimum of four points from their June qualifiers to return them to the top of the group.

The group winner will directly qualify for the World Cup, which will be co-hosted by Canada, Mexico, and the United States.

The runner-up could compete in the play-off to advance to the inter-confederation playoffs.