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PSL sends plenty of players to AFCON

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Peter Shalulile of Mamelodi Sundowns during the CAF Champions League 2023/24 match between Mamelodi Sundowns and Pyramids at the Loftus Stadium, Pretoria on the 10 December 2023 ©Muzi Ntombela/BackpagePix

South Africa have the squad with the most home-based players for the Africa Cup of Nations finals after Hugo Broos named 20 of his 23 players for the Ivory Coast from Premier Soccer League clubs.

But clubs from the DStv Premiership and the Motsepe Foundation Championship will also be represented in other squads, with a sprinkling across all the other groups at the tournament in the Ivory Coast.

There are a surprisingly high number of goalkeepers who are going to the finals from DStv Premiership clubs, or who have played in the league in the past, with Nigeria picking the uncapped Stanley Nwabili from Chippa United in a shock selection as they look for solutions to their perennial goalkeeping problem.

Ghana are to be captained by Orlando Pirates’ Richard Ofori despite the fact the giant ‘keeper is down the pecking order at his club and not played a single minute for them in this campaign while Polokwane City’s first choice goalkeeper Manuel Sapunga is in the Equatorial Guinea squad for a second successive tournament.

Badra Ali Sangare of Sekhukhune United was a fortuitous first choice for hosts Ivory Coast in Cameroon two years ago after their regular No. 1 was banned for steroid use but he looks likely to be back on the bench again after the Ivorians found a new goalkeeper in the French second division.

Guinea Bissau captain and goalkeeper Jonas Mendes is going to his fourth successive tournament and the 34-year-old had two seasons at Black Leopards after they signed him from Portugal. He has since moved to Greece and plays for Kalamata in the second division.

Edmilson is the only South African-based player in the Mozambique squad but the 40-year-old Dominguez is no stranger to South Africans fans, having won the Player of the Season when he helped SuperSport United to a first league title in 2008 and then starred with Mamelodi Sundowns before moving onto Royal AM, where his contract ran out in July.

Tanzania have named Richards Bay defender Abi Banda in their squad while Sekhukhune United’s Rally Bwalya is the only South African-based player for Zambia as Gamphani Lungu of SuperSport United did not make the cut. Goalkeeper Toaster Nsabta now back playing his club football in Zambia after two seasons at Sekhukhune while Roderick Kabwe is now in Iraq after playing for Ajax Cape Town, Black Leopards and Sekhukhune.

Namibia have a strong South African links Peter Shalulile is back after missing last month’s opening two World Cup qualifiers and is one of nine South African-based players picked by coach Collin Benjamin in a 23-man preliminary squad.

Riaan Hanamub (AmaZulu), Lubeni Haukongo (Cape Town Spurs), Deon Hotto (Orlando Pirates) and Chippa United goalkeeper Loydt Kazapua are from the DStv Premiership while Ananias Gebhardt (Baroka), Joslin Kamatuka (Maritzburg United), Edward Maova (University of Pretoria) and Bethuel Muzeu (Black Leopards) play in the Motsepe Foundation Championship.

Denzil Hoaseb is ex-Jomo Cosmos, Highlands Park and Polokwane City while Charles Hambira had one season at TS Sporting and Kennedy Amutenya one season at Ajax Cape Town. Petrus Shitembi played for University of Pretoria, AmaZulu and Stellenbosch before he went off to play in Malaysia.