Illness-plagued Bafana Bafana coach Carlos Alberto Parreira has ruled out Orlando Pirates striker Lebohang Mokoena and Santos midfielder Erwin Isaacs from the South African squad for Cosafa Cup games this weekend — but he remained undecided on Monday whether he would make the trip to Swaziland himself.
Brought into the Bafana squad as replacements for Mokoena, who is injured, and Isaacs, who is under a club suspension, are Santos striker Eleazer Rogers and SuperSport United midfielder Richard Rantjie.
Meanwhile, the former Brazil World Cup coach is still under doctor’s instructions to rest after being taken to a Johannesburg clinic last week complaining of an inflamed rib cage and fever.
The beleaguered Parreira broke a rib in a fall in Brazil earlier in the month after undergoing a knee operation — and was recovering successfully from both problems when he became ill last Thursday.
Bafana media spokesperson Gugu Marawa said that while the coach was recuperating as well as could be expected, a decision whether Parreira would accompany what is effectively the Bafana B squad for the opening Cosafa Cup game against Malawi on Saturday would only be made after a visit to his doctor on Tuesday.
Marawa said a decision would also be taken on Tuesday as to when the full-strength Bafana squad to play Chad in an African Nations Cup qualifying game on Saturday June 2 would be announced — with the burning issue here whether free-scoring, but enigmatic Benni McCarthy would return to the South African fold. — Sapa