South Africa may have secured their ticket to the 2025 AFCON Round of 16, but Bafana Bafana head coach Hugo Broos is far from a celebratory mood.
In a scathing post-match assessment following Bafana Bafana’s frantic 3-2 victory over Zimbabwe on Monday in a Group B tie, the Belgian tactician took aim at his players’ “undisciplined” attitude and a growing sense of complacency.
While Bafana achieved back-to-back knockout stage qualifications under Broos, the path to the last 16 has been anything but smooth. The team has endured what many critics describe as three of the most uninspiring performances in recent memory, leaving the 2017 CAF AFCON-winning coach searching for answers.
The victory over Zimbabwe at the Grand Stade de Marrakech was a microcosm of Bafana’s group-stage struggles. Despite taking the lead on three separate occasions, South Africa failed to exert any lasting control over the game, allowing a determined but limited “Warriors” side to claw their way back twice.
The result followed a disastrous 1-0 defeat to Egypt on Friday, which brought an end to Bafana’s impressive 27-match unbeaten run. Most galling for Broos was the fact that the Pharaohs played more than half the match with 10 men after Mohamed Hany’s dismissal, yet South Africa lacked the clinical edge to capitalise.
BROOS: ‘SUCCESS IS NOT A GUARANTEE’
Addressing a tense post-match press conference, Broos did not mince his words regarding the shift in his team’s psychological approach compared to their heroic bronze-medal run in 2024.
“I have to agree that I am not really happy with the performance or the way some players are acting on the pitch, that is true,” Broos remarked. “Again, this is something we have to work on, and it’s from the beginning of the tournament. We have to know that the progress we made over the last two years is not a guarantee that you come on the pitch and win the game.”
Broos highlighted that South Africa’s newfound status as a continental “force” has fundamentally changed the way opponents approach them.
“I said it already before the tournament: it will be tougher for us than two years ago. Now everybody knows what a good team we are, and the mindset of the opponent is totally different. It is not because you are now ‘South Africa’ that teams are afraid of you. No, it is the motivation for the teams to try and beat you.”
BAFANA’S FRUSTRATING GROUP B JOURNEY
Bafana Bafana’s journey through Group B was a sequence of results that secured progression but left much to be desired in terms of consistency. They opened their campaign with a 2-1 victory over Angola, a match characterised by a shaky first half where the team had to rely on individual brilliance to pull through.
This was followed by a disappointing 1-0 loss to Egypt, a result that was particularly painful as South Africa failed to score despite their opponents playing with ten men, ultimately ending Bafana’s 27-match unbeaten streak. They concluded the group stage with a frantic 3-2 win against Zimbabwe, a game defined by recurring defensive lapses and a total loss of tactical control after taking the lead.
As the tournament moves into the knockout phase, the pressure on Broos to replicate—or better—last year’s podium finish is immense. South African fans, fueled by the memories of the 2024 underdog story, now expect the “Belgian Maestro” to guide the team to the final in Morocco.
However, Broos’s current priority is not tactical, but mental. “You have to fight more and be more concentrated,” he warned. “Don’t think it will be easy today.”
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