South Africa get injury boost ahead of World Cup opener against Mexico

[p]The injury came after [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/modiba-aubrey/tWExAYOC/"]Modiba[/a] scored a superb free-kick for [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/mamelodi-sundowns/lxZ6Bzh6/"]Mamelodi Sundowns[/a] in their home leg against Moroccan side AS FAR, who they went on to beat on aggregate without the left-back in the second leg.[/p][p][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/kaizer-chiefs/fFZ2CGx0/"]Kaizer Chiefs[/a]’ [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/cross-bradley/lji5D2NO/"]Bradley Cross[/a] was brought into the Bafana Bafana squad for the World Cup as a third option in case the injury to Modiba did not heal in time ahead of the tournament, but so far the latter is on course to play.[/p][p]Bafana take on [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/mexico/O6iHcNkd/"]Mexico[/a] in the opening match of the tournament in Mexico City on Thursday, before further Group A clashes against [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/czech-republic/6LHwBDGU/"]Czech Republic[/a] in Atlanta (June 18) and [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/south-korea/K6Gs7P6G/"]South Korea[/a] in Monterrey (June 24).[/p][p]Modiba’s vast experience makes him a likely starter against Mexico if the medical staff are satisfied he can last the 90 minutes.[/p][embed guid="0eca80e4-2847-4d93-849d-90f6fbe1a232" url="https://x.com/BraMahlatse/status/2064207219399254460?s=20" social-type="twitter" /][p]His story is an interesting one, his ability spotted through the Nedbank Ke Yona talent identification programme that assessed thousands of young boys every year and chose a handful to go through training and hopefully be set on the path to a professional career.[/p][p]He was a left winger then and spotted in the 2014 campaign by the Ke Yona coaching quartet of Shakes Mashaba, Owen Da Gama, Khabo Zondo and Mike Mangena, though, to be fair, he had also been part of the Transnet School of Excellence at the time.[/p][p]He signed for [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/black-aces/MFYmqktQ/"]Mpumalanga Black Aces[/a] and made his PSL debut in February 2015, before becoming a regular the following season under coach Muhsin Ertugral.[/p][p]When the club’s franchise was sold to John Comitis to form [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/cape-town-city/l8K0DYSm/"]Cape Town City[/a] in the 2016/17 season, Modiba did not fancy a move to the Mother City and, though he played two games for the club, left for SuperSport United in that transfer window.[/p][p]He spent four successful seasons with Matsatsantsa before making the short switch to cross-town rivals Mamelodi Sundowns, where he has been a stalwart performer ever since.[/p][embed guid="9194cbd0-a1b2-4fc5-b41f-9e57c49aba80" url="https://x.com/SoccerBeatZA/status/2064179978938315076?s=20" social-type="twitter" /][p]In all, the 30-year-old has made 375 appearances (296 starts) in professional club football, scoring 32 goals, a very healthy return from full-back.[/p][p]He has made 47 appearances for Bafana Bafana since his debut in the COSAFA Cup in June 2016. Months later, he was part of the South African team that competed at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympic Games.[/p][p]By contrast, his competitors for a starting place against Mexico are inexperienced at this level. The 22-year-old [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/kabini-samukele/Q7PoBDsT/"]Samukele Kabini[/a] plays for [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/molde/KYcp5BgH/"]Molde[/a] in Norway and has just six caps, while Cross has one, making his debut against [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/nicaragua/6L9QjkfT/"]Nicaragua[/a] last month.[/p][p]His background as a winger means he is not the greatest defender, but can be a weapon going forward for the side. Kabini and Cross are two more defensively minded left-backs, which could come into the mind of coach Hugo Broos.[/p]