Confident South Africa ready to make their mark against Bolivia

South Africa coach Vela Khumalo says his side are ready to seize their moment when they open their FIFA Under-17 World Cup campaign against Bolivia on Monday, insisting the young Amajimbos are determined to showcase their talent on the global stage.

“This is long overdue. We’ve been waiting for this moment,” Khumalo said ahead of the match. “We took ourselves here, and now we want to do our talking on the pitch, for the country, for ourselves, and for the players. We want to do it well.”

South Africa will be missing several key players, but Khumalo remains upbeat about the quality within his squad. “Much as we are going to miss a lot of players, South Africa is blessed with talent,” he said. “We are going to showcase that. The boys are in a good space and ready to go. Hopefully they will deliver.”

The coach took a moment to pay tribute to those who have contributed to youth development back home. “I need to thank South Africans for the support and the coaches in development who made life easy for all of us. My job is just to put the team together, the talent is there. This is for them,” he said.

Khumalo has studied the Bolivians closely and expects a challenging opener. “We’ve seen a few of their matches when they were qualifying. They were runners-up in their group, and they’re tactically and technically good,” he said. “It’s a World Cup, a different ball game altogether. You cannot take anything for granted. We need to capitalise where we can and do our best.”

With the match expected to be played in warm conditions, Khumalo says game management will be key. “Even the weather is going to play a role,” he explained. “We need to manage the game and the distances between players, that’s going to be important. But we want to give it our best shot and leave a good mark here.”

Khumalo insists the team’s focus is on progression rather than participation. “Let’s not talk about being third best, we want to win our group,” he said. “If we win our games, we create good opportunities to go to the next round. We want to start with a win against Bolivia, then take it step by step.”

He also looked ahead to their second group fixture against the hosts, describing it as a massive occasion. “We’re told the stadium will be sold out, and we want to spoil the party,” he said. “It’s going to be a pressure match, but we want to win and move to the next round.”

For Khumalo, the World Cup represents a personal and collective milestone. “This is where every coach wants to be, at a World Cup,” he said. “The nerves are there, but we’re all human. It’s about managing them and not letting them affect the boys. We must give them confidence and keep teaching, because learning never stops.”

He believes this tournament is just the beginning for his players. “We’ve given them the tools and the ammunition to be better players in the future,” he said. “The future is there for these lads.”