Orlando Pirates coach Abdeslam Ouaddou has made a direct appeal to Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos, insisting that goalkeeper Sipho Chaine has done enough to earn a spot on the plane to the FIFA World Cup in the United States and Mexico. Chaine has been a standout performer this season, recently matching Ronwen Williams’ Betway Premiership clean-sheet record after another commanding display against Stellenbosch FC. The Bloemfontein-born shot-stopper now sits on 18 clean sheets in the league with three matches remaining, meaning he could break the record outright. Ouaddou did not mince words when addressing the media. “I’m happy for him that he broke the record, and we still have some games left,” Ouaddou said. “I really, really hope that he will be part of the national team in the US. He deserves it and he’s working hard for that.”
Despite his remarkable consistency, Chaine has remained outside the national setup and was overlooked for the recent friendly matches against Panama, where Williams remained first choice and Ricardo Goss and Renaldo Leaner were selected as backups. Leaner was handed an opportunity in the second match but endured a difficult outing as Bafana lost 2-1, and his form has since struggled badly, including a poor performance for Sekhukhune United against Stellenbosch where he was substituted before full time. Meanwhile, Kaizer Chiefs goalkeeper Brandon Petersen has started attracting attention following impressive displays in high-pressure matches, including the Soweto derby and against Mamelodi Sundowns. These performances have increased calls for Broos to consider him, adding another layer to the mounting competition for places.
Still, Chaine’s relentless consistency this season makes his case impossible to ignore. He has already broken Moeneeb Josephs’ long-standing Orlando Pirates club record for clean sheets and could finish the campaign with an even bigger piece of Betway Premiership history. With the FIFA World Cup