‘I didn’t see a reason why we shouldn’t call him,’ said the Bafana head coach.
Bafana Bafana head coach Hugo Broos has explained the reasons behind giving Jayden Adams a second chance after recalling the Mamelodi Sundowns midfielder to his squad for the upcoming 2026 Fifa World Cup qualifiers against Lesotho and Benin.
Adams booted by Bafana
Broos kicked Adams out of the Bafana squad last October when he failed to report to camp on time ahead of their 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against Congo-Brazzaville.
ALSO READ – ‘I’ll keep on knocking’ – Mabasa reacts to Bafana snub
Adams has not been in a Bafana squad since then, but he has been in excellent form since joining Mamelodi Sundowns from Stellenbosch FC in January.
“Everybody knows why Jayden was not with us, and we hope he has learned from what he did,” said the Bafana head coach.
“He knows what he did and you can’t do that. If you have a call up you have to do everything to come. I said it before, that we wanted to show him it was not the right attitude. But on his qualities (as a player), I like him.
“He has been playing well with Sundowns so I didn’t see a reason why we shouldn’t call him.”
The Bafana head coach admitted that he was initially worried when Adams joined Sundowns.
‘We are very happy’
“I was afraid he wouldn’t play because Sundowns have a lot of players!” said Broos.
“But he has managed to play a lot of games so we are very happy.”
Adams has made 13 appearances for Sundowns, netting two goals. He is set to take the field again on Sunday when Masandawana take on Orlando Pirates in a Betway Premiership showdown at Orlando Stadium.
13 of Bafana’s 23-man squad play for Sundowns or Pirates, so Broos will be desperate for no injuries in Sunday’s game, ahead of the two vital Group C matches.
ALSO READ: Tau returns for Bafana as Broos targets six out of six
Bafana will play Lesotho on March 21 at the Peter Mokaba Stadium in Polokwane. Four days later they will face Benin in the Ivory Coast, because Benin do not have a home stadium that meets Confederation of African Football regulations.
