Stuart Baxter seems to have played his final hand as Bafana Bafana coach. Word on the street is that his Safa bosses will drop the axe if he loses to Nigeria.
First of all, that would be a mistake, because Bafana would still be in with a chance to qualify for next year’s Afcon in Cameroon.
But it’s Safa, so what do you expect?
It would serve them, the public and the national team players better to drop the guillotine only if Baxter fails to guide them to the continental showpiece or once their tournament is over.
Still, Baxter looks like a man with the world on his shoulders.
Injuries to his midfield have pretty much changed the coach’s plans. But back to that in a moment.
Like John the Baptist, Baxter has had to look in the wilderness for his saviour and he has anointed Thulani Serero as his chosen one.
Serero has been out of the Bafana camp for almost a year now and the 28-year-old will have a job to do.
Whether he is still “Cream”, time will tell. But the good news for Baxter is that the playmaker can make a difference in the game against the Nigerians.
Playing against the Super Eagles, Baxter will know from his chat with opposition coach Gernot Rohr that the west Africans don’t have much.
That battle will be key, but Bafana have the personnel and the tactics to dominate the centre of the park and hurt Nigeria.
Wingbacks like Thembinkosi Lorch and Thami Mkhize can block the Eagles flyers high up the pitch and give Bafana a good platform to attack from.