By Obaloluwa Joshua, LAGOS
Bafana Bafana of South Africa head coach Hugo Broos has named Nigerian-born defender Ime Okon in his 54-player preliminary squad for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations.
Okon, 21, was born to a Nigerian father and South African mother.
The centre-back has made five appearances for Bafana Bafana.
Broos picked 13 players from Orlando Pirates, who were semi-finalists in the CAF Champions League last season, and 10 from Mamelodi Sundowns, who were runners-up in the same competition, as home-based players dominated the selection.
The South African Football Association said the final squad would be named “in the coming days”, well ahead of the December 11 deadline for all 24 finalists to name their selections for the tournament.
Themba Zwane was included in the preliminary squad for the Africa Cup of Nations even though the 36-year-old has been out through injury since September.
Zwane, who spent most of last season out with a knee injury, was hurt in mid-September again, suffering another knee injury. But he was a crucial player for South Africa when they reached the semi-finals of the last Cup of Nations in Cote d’Ivoire.
There are 12 foreign-based players in the squad.
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