One of the calm heads in the South African defence, an eleventh-hour injury in June forced Thwala out of the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup when he had already tattooed his name on then-coach Joel Santana’s squad. While this might have been heartbreaking for the hard-tackling defender, it could inspire him to make up for the time lost in the FIFA World Cup™. He has been one of the most consistent defenders in the domestic South African league and it comes as no surprise that he has once again been given the benefit of a doubt by Carlos Alberto Parrreira.
While he is not likely to start any game, he is Parreira’s most reliable back-up plan should anything go wrong with his starting back four. Thwala is not only strong in defence, but has proved to be handy in attack, scoring crucial goals for both his club Orlando Pirates and at times for his country. His biggest advantage is his ability to play both at centre-back and at left-back, giving the team’s technical staff more options at the back.
