South Africa receive injury boost ahead of World Cup opener against Mexico
The injury occurred after Modiba scored an excellent free-kick for Mamelodi Sundowns in their home leg against Moroccan side AS FAR, whom they went on to beat on aggregate without the left-back in the second leg.
Kaizer Chiefs’ Bradley Cross was added to the Bafana Bafana squad for the World Cup as a third option in case Modiba’s injury did not heal in time for the tournament, but so far the latter is on track to play.
Bafana face Mexico in the opening match of the tournament in Mexico City on Thursday, before further Group A matches against Czech Republic in Atlanta (June 18) and South Korea in Monterrey (June 24).
Modiba’s extensive experience makes him a likely starter against Mexico if the medical team are satisfied he can last the full 90 minutes.
His story is an interesting one; his talent was identified through the Nedbank Ke Yona talent identification programme, which assesses thousands of young boys each year and selects a handful to undergo training, hopefully setting them on the path to a professional career.
He was a left winger at the time and was spotted in the 2014 campaign by the Ke Yona coaching quartet of Shakes Mashaba, Owen Da Gama, Khabo Zondo and Mike Mangena, though, to be fair, he had also been part of the Transnet School of Excellence at the time.
He signed for Mpumalanga Black Aces and made his PSL debut in February 2015, before becoming a regular the following season under coach Muhsin Ertugral.
When the club’s franchise was sold to John Comitis to form Cape Town City in the 2016/17 season, Modiba was not keen on a move to the Mother City and, although he played two games for the club, he left for SuperSport United in that transfer window.
He spent four successful seasons with Matsatsantsa before making the short switch to cross-town rivals Mamelodi Sundowns, where he has been a consistent performer ever since.
In total, the 30-year-old has made 375 appearances (296 starts) in professional club football, scoring 32 goals, a very healthy return from full-back.
He has made 47 appearances for Bafana Bafana since his debut in the COSAFA Cup in June 2016. Months later, he was part of the South African team that competed at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympic Games.
By contrast, his competitors for a starting place against Mexico are inexperienced at this level. The 22-year-old Samukele Kabini plays for Molde in Norway and has just six caps, while Cross has one, having made his debut against Nicaragua last month.
His background as a winger means he is not the strongest defender, but he can be an attacking weapon for the side. Kabini and Cross are two more defensively minded left-backs, which could influence the thinking of coach Hugo Broos.