Cape Town - Bafana Bafana coach Stuart Baxter named his provisional 2019 Africa Cup of Nations squad with Itumeleng Khune missing out on the selection.

The Kaizer Chiefs goalkeeper has been sidelined with a serious shoulder injury since the start of the new year.

The Scotsman revealed that it is unfortunate Khune has an injury because he would have been considered for the AFCON squad.

"I’m always keen on Khune because he is a good goalkeeper," said Baxter.

"But unfortunately if the player is not fit I can’t be too keen on him.”

The continental showpiece kicks off on 21 June, and Baxter has wasted little time in announcing his initial squad, with that number set to be whittled down to 23 players 10 days before the start of the competition.

In March, Baxter revealed that he would give Khune a chance to prove his fitness ahead of AFCON squad selection but Khune has not been training and remains in the recovery process.

"Itu is not fit and he’s not played games,” Baxter said.

"He is not back in full training and is not featuring for Chiefs at all.

"So to count on Khune will be a massive miss in our calculations. So we’ve waited and looked from afar‚ and I said‚ if he showed signs of getting back into things‚ we would address it.

"But it never got to that point because we’ve seen he’s not even on the bench at Chiefs."

Bafana get their tournament started against the Ivory Coast on Monday, June 24 in Cairo before playing at the same venue on Friday, June 28 against Namibia.

They then round off the group stage with a match against Morocco on Monday, July 1.

BAFANA BAFANA AFCON SQUAD:

Goalkeepers

Darren Keet (Wits), Ronwen Williams (SuperSport United), Bruce Bvuma (Kaizer Chiefs)

Defenders

Daniel Cardoso (Kaizer Chiefs), Rivaldo Coetzee (Mamelodi Sundowns), Ramahlwe Mphahlele (Kaizer Chiefs), Thulani Hlatshwayo (Wits), Buhle Mkhwanazi (Wits), Sifiso Hlanti (Wits), Innocent Maela (Orlando Pirates), Thamsanqa Mkhize (Cape Town City)

Midfielders

Bongani Zungu (France, Amiens), Hlompho Kekana (Mamelodi Sundowns), Themba Zwane (Mamelodi Sundowns), Tiyani Mabunda (Mamelodi Sundowns), Dean Furman (SuperSport United), Kamohelo Mokotjo (England, Brentford), Thulani Serero (Netherlands, Vitesse FC), Thembinkosi Lorch (Orlando Pirates), Keagan Dolly (Montpellier, France), Fortune Makaringe (Maritzburg United), Ben Motshwari (Orlando Pirates)

Forwards

Lebo Mothiba (France, Strasbourg), Percy Tau (Belgium, Royal Union Saint), Lars Veldwijk (Netherlands, Sparta Rotterdam), Lebogang Maboe (Mamelodi Sundowns), Sibusiso Vilakazi (Mamelodi Sundowns), Kermit Erasmus (Cape Town City)