South Africa head coach Ephraim ‘Shakes’ Mashaba has been suspended from his position with immediate effect and will not be involved in the country’s friendly away to Mozambique on Tuesday.
The South African Football Association (SAFA) confirmed the decision in an announcement on Sunday.
In what the association called a “regrettable incident”, Mashaba publicly criticised SAFA president Danny Jordaan for allegedly not supporting him in his media conference following Saturday’s 2-1 win over Senegal in World Cup qualifying.
With Mashaba exiled, assistant boss Owen da Gama will be in charge of the Mozambique match.
SAFA’s statement read: “Bafana Bafana Head Coach Ephraim ‘Shakes’ Mashaba will not join the team on their trip to Mozambique as the Association has deemed it necessary to employ disciplinary measures after a regrettable incident at Peter Mokaba Stadium on Saturday, 12 November 2016.
“Assistant Coach Owen da Gama will take charge of the team in the above- mentioned international friendly match against Mozambique on Tuesday, 15 November 2016 in Maputo.
“As is our custom in matters such as these, the Association will not be making any further comments on this matter out of respect for the dignity of the head coach and the Association and the legally privileged nature of such proceedings.”
Mashaba has been in the job since July 2014 and has South Africa sitting second in their World Cup qualifying group, but they failed to make it to the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations and finished bottom in their group when they did qualify for the 2015 tournament.
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