CAPE Town City coach Benni McCarthy has blasted Bafana Bafana coach Stuart Baxter for snubbing his red-hot striker Kermit Erasmus.
The Bafana legend turned coach did not hold back as he tore into Baxter for Erasmus’ omission in the Bafana squad to face Libya in the crucial Africa Cup of Nation qualifier to be held in Sfax, Tunisia, on 24 March (6pm).
Baxter didn’t include the former Orlando Pirates striker in the national squad because he claims Erasmus is “not a team player”.
The former FC Porto star lost his cool as he struggled to understand why the on-form Erasmus is being snubbed.
McCarthy said: “Baxter goes and says that Kermit is not a team player, I completely disagree with him. It’s a bit frustrating when you see these things happening. Baxter has another thing coming. I had a conversation with him and told him that Kermit is 95% ready.
“If he gets to 100% level he won’t be playing in Mzansi. He is too good. He has the determination and the drive, and he will be back in Europe soon, that’s what I said to Baxter. But to my surprise the player is not good enough today.”
McCarthy said it’s not the end of the world for Erasmus and that he must use the snub to work even harder.
He said: “It’s not like his world will crumble down. He will strive to be better than he is with us. He is at a good place.”
McCarthy said Erasmus is handling this situation like a man and won’t allow anything to distract him from his focus on the field of play.
McCarthy said that Baxter should know if Bafana don’t qualify it’s because of decisions like these, excluding players who deserve to be in the national team based on form.
He said: “When we don’t qualify then we know why. It is because we don’t select players based on merit here. Kermit deserves to be in the Bafana squad, but for some reason he is not.”
