Kekana and Broos offer contrasting views on Tunisia ahead of crucial AFCON clash

On the heels of a confidence-boosting opening victory against Namibia, Bafana Bafana defender Grant Kekana and coach Hugo Broos have shared contrasting views on Tunisia ahead of the crucial AFCON.

Bafana lock horns with Tunisia in their final Group E showdown on Wednesday with their destiny firmly in their own hands.

With a Last 16 spot up for grabs, Bafana head into this all-or-nothing clash at the Amadou Gon Coulibaly Stadium in Korhogo, Ivory Coast, knowing that a draw or victory will suffice.

The Wednesday evening encounter, kicking off at 19:00, promises to be a thriller, as Tunisia needs a win to stand a chance of going through.

Bafana, buoyed by their 4-0 hammering of Namibia, must navigate the challenge of a wounded Tunisia. The Carthage Eagles were stunned 1-0 by Namibia in their opener before playing out to a 1-1 draw against Mali in their second game.

After two outings, Tunisia are at the bottom of Group E with a single point, while Bafana are second with three points, one adrift of leaders Mali, who beat SA 2-0 in their AFCON opener.

While addressing the media on Tuesday afternoon, Broos and Kekana offered different views on Tunisia’s showing against Namibia.

Broos attributed Tunisia’s performance to underestimating the Brave Warriors, while Kekana credited Namibia’s strong showing.

HUGO BROOS AND GRANT KEKANA ON TUNISIA

“Tunisia is a very good team,” said Broos. “I saw the first game against Namibia, and that was not the real Tunisia I know.

“They have good players, and they are a strong team, but they underestimated their opponents that day. I saw a strong Tunisia against Mali. They played a good game, so they know what they have to do tomorrow. Tunisia have to win, so we are prepared for that, and we will try to ensure that doesn’t happen tomorrow.”

On the other hand, Kekana said: “To be fair to Namibia, I think they had a good game. It didn’t look like the Tunisians underestimated them too much.

“I think they just gave a good account of themselves and pushed to try and win that game. And obviously, we can’t be complacent on our side. We understand that we got a good victory against Namibia, but it is not the end.

“It only gets tougher each and every game, and we are going to prepare well as a team and stay grounded because we don’t want to get carried away because of the previous results, so our job is to go into the game prepared as best as possible and try to get a positive result so we can stay in the tournament.”

RELATED STORY: Grant Kekana: ‘There’s still a lot to play for’