The Central Americans will provide a stern test and coach Hugo Broos has already told his Bafana players that he will not accept any underperformance in these two games.
Captain Ronwen Williams says the players are aware they are fighting for their places at the global finals, and believes they have put their Cup of Nations disappointment behind them.
How does it feel to be back in camp?
Ronwen Williams: It is good to be back in camp again. Obviously, we had to wait three months to get back together, and it was a painful three months because of our experience at AFCON and the disappointment. So I think there was a lot of reflection. A lot of guys had to go away and look at where we got it wrong, and at our identity as a team.
It was a very painful moment, but I think we have had a good chat with the coach (Hugo Broos) and the technical team over the last few days, and you can see the team is slowly coming back. The identity and the energy in training have been amazing. Hopefully we can keep that, learn from AFCON, grow and try to be better.
How are you managing everything that is going on, with intense club football at Mamelodi Sundowns and the World Cup coming up?
It is a wonderful pressure to have. It shows that you are doing well, that you are still part of all these major tournaments and that you have something to play for. It keeps you focused, it keeps you ready, and obviously you know that in a few months there is the big one, which is the World Cup.
So everyone has something to play for and there is a lot of motivation. It is a good headache to have. Hopefully there are no major problems from now until then, so that we can go with our full squad and everyone is ready, and then we can go out there with all our soldiers and be war-ready.
The coach has spoken about wanting the team’s energy back, even though Panama are not Mexico. How important is that for the players?
Definitely, that has been one of the main topics. We need to bring that team back and go back to the values that made us so successful over the last few years. Yes, we did let that go, and as players we addressed it, the coaches addressed it, and now is the time to show that we have learned our lessons.
It was a very painful lesson to learn when the expectations were so high and the disappointment we had in Morocco was so big. You could see it in the players. It took a very long time for the players to feel normal again because we had high expectations, not only ourselves but also from the country.
Now is the time to show that we have learned and to win back the trust of the coach because obviously we let him down. We felt we had built something very good over the last few years, and for it to slip away at such a crucial moment just shows how this game can humble you. I think that is the major lesson we took from it: stick to the values that carried us over the last few years and put us among the best, because this game can humble you, and it is painful.
As players, what have you made of Panama as opponents and what can these games teach you ahead of the World Cup?
Obviously, they are a team with a lot of quality. They are ranked 33rd in the world, and we know how difficult it is to get to that level because we have not been above the 50 mark for a very long time. So that already shows the quality they have.
We have analysed them, watched clips and familiarised ourselves with them. They are a team you need to take seriously because they do not need a lot of chances to punish you. That is what we saw, especially in their last qualifier, which they won 3-0. I think they only had three chances and they took them. That shows how deadly they can be and how efficient they are in front of goal.
They are also a compact team and do not give too much away. It is going to be a good test for us. I think it will give us, the coach and even the public an idea of where we are and what we still need to do to be ready for that first World Cup match against Mexico.
What do you make of the competition among the goalkeepers in the squad and especially having Renaldo Leaner in this camp?
First and foremost, it is about the quality that is being brought into the department. He has been one of the more consistent goalkeepers over the last few years.
He has done extremely well and earned his call-up through his performances and the way he has played for his team. There have been a lot of moments where he has carried his team on his back.
You can also see in training that he does not feel like someone new because he has been part of the team before. He comes with the right energy, the right spirit and he is willing to learn as well. That is good for him. It can only help him and benefit him to have someone like myself and Ricardo, who have been there at the highest level for such a long time. For him to rub shoulders with us and learn can only benefit him.
It is a good addition. There are so many goalkeepers doing extremely well in the league. A lot of people have been complaining about a shortage of goalkeepers in South Africa, but I do not think that is the case.
Now there are so many for the coach to choose from that people are asking different questions, whereas a few months ago they were saying there was a shortage.
It is a good headache to have and it keeps us all on our toes. Three months from now there is a big World Cup and there are probably five or six goalkeepers doing extremely well. So we need to keep going and keep pushing.
As goalkeepers, we are a family on our own. We help each other, we strive to be the best and we know how difficult the position is because only one can play. So we support one another in the good moments and the bad ones.