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by Thakasani Khumalo There was so much to take from this match. Bafana were blatantly the least favourite on paper, but still the favourites because of the home soil advantage they held. The instinctively lethal Diego Forlan was once more a hot topic in South Africa, this time for torturing Bafana in their home turf. It would start as; Uruguay should have won their opening match in which they played a goalless draw against France, in Cape Town. They should have torn apart the hapless French team, France were beyond miserable to the extent that after the match they were castigated by French legend Zinedine Zidane. But French coach Raymond Domenech said they were “Happy with the overall result.” Justly so, a draw was better than nothing from this match for him. On the other hand; South Africa should have also walked victorious in their opening match, if it wasn’t for a late tale dismal choke. They were simply a better team than Mexico from onset, they lost concentration

by Thakasani Khumalo “You can’t pay Pitso what you pay South African coaches. He’s not competing against South African coaches. He’s competing against coaches on the continent. So you have to go to the bank to ask for overdraft.” Says Mamelodi Sundowns owner Dr Patrice Motsepe, after Pitso Mosimane had signed a four year deal extension. Although the statement by Motsepe may be discordant to Pitso’s adversary here in South Africa, and candidly stirring some sense of hostility among them. But, Pitso remains, arguably the epicurean of South African football and exorbitantly out of stock that no amount of sum can purchase him; he’s priceless to put it succinctly. Watching SABC’s weekend retro show REMEMBER THEUNFORGETABLE   reminded me of what South African football was all about and Pitso was fondly part of it. Pitso’s career in a nutshell: began his senior career at Jomo Cosmos in 1982-83 season, played for Sundowns in 85, it was much of a reverse-forward career as he went back

This weekend everyone will be eagerly spirited and anxiously so, as the Bundesliga buckles it up for a paradigm shift to the ‘new reality’, and this may just serve as an example to other leagues in the world. The only league that has shown the world football that football can happen despite COVID-19 is South Korea’s K League, they may not be popular but last Friday when they re-kicked-off the proceedings they left an imprint. Bundesliga part of the famed Europe’s top five will re-kick-off this coming weekend, and possibly setting an example for others who will be observing this grand experiment so to say, “The whole world will be watching the Bundesliga.” Says former Bayern star Owen Hargreaves, rightly so, everyone would be knelling everything goes well, for if it goes well in German why wouldn’t it in Laliga, Serie A and Premier League? These are precarious, nonhabitual times, where everyone must adapt to newly formed reality, and the return of the Bundesliga is an axiom. T

As Miguel Delaney the Independent UK Chief football writer puts it “If there is no feeling on a football pitch like scoring the winning goal in a World Cup final, there are few off it like the atmosphere of anticipation before such game.” Well, scoring a goal is each player’s goal, but doing it in the biggest international tournament in football history is every player’s dreams. I hope we have realized how insipid and melancholy life is without any Live sport event, football, particularly. Watching SuperSports’ Re-live did not prove to be much of a waste, as I found myself nostalgic and decided to reminiscent through one of the greatest triumphs South African football has gone through. South Africa are declared the host of 2010 FIFA World Cup, the dignifying moment, and truly was a special moment in South Africa’s post-Apartheid Era, it was a time of especially rigid conformity and while will be remembered eternally for greater parts of South African football. South Africa is t