Bafana Bafana coach Stuart Baxter insists says he is looking forward to pairing Lorenzo Gordinho and Rivaldo Coetzee in defence for their international friendly against Zambia on Tuesday.

South Africa claimed a historic 2-0 victory over Nigeria during their first Africa Cup of Nations qualifier on Saturday.

The 23-year-old is set to make his debut for the South African national team when they play Chipolopolo at Moruleng Stadium.

The Bafana Bafana coach insisted that Erick Mathoho will be sidelined with a shoulder injury, while captain Thulani Hlatswayo will miss out on a starting berth in the match against Chipolopolo.

However, Baxter has now revealed that Gordinho will link up with Ajax Cape Town’s Coetzee in the centre of defence on Tuesday.

“It will be an interesting pairing playing against a strong Zambia team. Can they cope? We will see,” Baxter said

The Bafana Bafana coach has not released his starting XI yet, but he insisted that he is planning on fielding a strong squad against Zambia.

Bafana Bafana against Zambia kicks off at 19:00.

– This story originally appeared on SportsClub.co.za