Bafana Bafana defender Sifiso Hlanti says he is hoping his side can redeem themselves and walk away with maximum points against Burkina Faso on Saturday.
The 27-year-old defender was present in the squad that conceded two defeats against Cape Verde in their previous two Fifa World Cup qualifying matches.
Hlanti says he is relishing the chance to help Bafana Bafana turn things around when they welcome Burkina Faso to the FNB Stadium on Saturday.
‘I think the most important thing for us as players is to win the game on Saturday. For this coming game, we need to be positive and redeem ourselves by collecting three points. It won’t be easy for us but we’re looking forward to it,’ Hlanti told the media.
‘We need to do our best, even if the supporters are not there. It’s about us, we can’t run away from it. We need to face it, and we’re looking forward to trying to turn things around.
‘One thing is for sure, the coach has told us that we need to be positive after what happened in the previous games. At the end of the day, it’s all about the national team. It’s about us, not the opposition. We respect them, but when it comes to on the field, we need to produce.’
The Bidvest Wits defender has stressed the importance of walking away with maximum points from the last the games remaining in Group D.
‘We’re only left with three games, and we need maximum points. The coach has done a lot, the rest is now up to us as players in terms of how we respond,’ he added.
‘We need to score goals. If you look at the way we played, we were comfortable on the ball but aren’t scoring enough.’
Bafana Bafana will host Burkina Faso at the FNB Stadium on Saturday, with kick-off set for 15:00.
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