Banyana Banyana’s coach Desiree Ellis has urged her troops to take their preparation games seriously if they are going to break into the World Cup final squad.
Johannesburg — Banyana Banyana’s coach Desiree Ellis has urged her troops to take their preparation games seriously if they are going to break into the World Cup finals squad.
Banyana started with their preparations for the World Cup in New Zealand and Australia next year on Friday, clashing with Brazil in their first friendly.
The African Queens were beaten 3-0 by their South American counterparts, thanks to goals from Geyse Ferreira, Adriano Silva and Tamires Britto.
Ellis felt that her troops played under pressure, while individual mistakes, especially defensively, and their bluntness in front of goal, let them down.
Centre-back duo Bongeka Gamede and Bambanani Mbane made poor clearances that led to the second goal in the first half and third in the second.
And with Banyana’s B-team impressive in the Cosafa Cup after reaching the semis, Ellis says the door is still open for anyone in the World Cup final squad.
“We are always looking at making this group bigger. But nobody’s place is guaranteed. It never was. I reiterated that in the same group,” she said.
“They might have a foot at the door but that doesn’t mean they are in the final squad. Nobody’s position is fixed. You are as good as your last game.
“They’ve got to raise their hands all the time. It’s the same as what happened in 2019. Players came in and weren’t part of the team that played Wafcon.”
Banyana will play their second friendly against the Samba Queens at Moses Mabhida Stadium on Monday evening, hoping to improve on Friday’s night match.
Banyana Banyana looking forward to getting things right in the second encounter against Brazil https://t.co/aRTjrdXFkI
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“We’ve got to be better defensively – not panic under pressure. Trust yourself because you know what you and your teammates are good at,” Ellis said.
“We still need to stay true to who we are even if we are pressed high. We are a team that wants to play from the back, but we have to trust ourselves.
“We have to make sure that we do things right. We spoke about rotating the ball quicker and sometimes we were caught in possession by Brazil.”
Brazil are one of the favourites to win next years’ global crown, given that they are Copa America Feminina champions after winning an eighth crown.
And that’s why it’s important for Banyana to take as many lessons as they possibly can in order to put in a good shift in their second World Cup in a row.
In their maiden and last global showpiece, the South Africans crashed out of the group stage after defeats to Spain, China and Germany in France.
“I was quite surprised that there were nerves because we had played some highly ranked nations before,” Ellis reflected on her team’s loss in Orlando.
“But I don’t think it was nerves. I think it was the pressure that they were put under. But we had said that it was going to be a level higher up than Wafcon.
“It was uncharacteristic for some of the players to fold like they did.”
