Kaizer Chiefsย icon Doctor Khumalo has attributed Bafana Bafanaโs premature exit from AFCON 2025 to player fatigue, noting that several key squad members appeared physically overextended during the tournament.”
South Africa crashed out of the AFCON in the Round of 16 after suffering a 2-1 defeat against Cameroon on Sunday night Agdal Medina Stadium in Rabat, Morocco.
Bafana Bafanaโs underwhelming performance against the Indomitable Lions shattered the dreams of millions of South Africans, who had hoped the team would finally end a 30-year drought to reclaim the elusive Nations Cup title.
The Hugo Broosโ charges made it to the knockout stage after finishing second place in Group B of AFCON with six points in three matches, while Egypt topped the group with seven points.
On the road to the knockout stage, Bafana claimed wins against Angola and Zimbabwe while suffering a defeat against Egypt. In the four matches played in the tournament, Bafana were far from convincing after leaking six goals, which made it difficult for the team to impose itself as one of the favorites to win the title.
Before the start of the AFCON, Bafana were tipped as one of the best teams that stood a chance of winning the Nations Cup. However, they fell short in the Last 16, and Doctor Khumalo says players such as Mamelodi Sundowns star Teboho Mokoena are tired after playing many games at club level.
WHAT DOCTOR KHUMALO SAID ABOUT BAFANA’S AFCON EXIT
โI must say that I’m proud of the boys, they lost as a team and that’s a footballing problem because if you miss [scoring] chances, you are bound to lose the game,โ Khumalo said.
โAnd also they tried their level best in the critical face of the match, 82 minutes, they scored the goal, but they were playing against the experienced Cameroon. I was wondering when they were going to change the formation from low block or medium block because all the teams that are playing South Africa were not pressing high, but we also didn’t have answers for dead-ball situations. We couldn’t deal with free-kicks and the corners.โ
Reflecting on what is different for Bafana after winning the bronze medal in the previous tournament, Khumalo stressed that players are fatigued.
โI think what made this campaign different was, I was looking at some of the players. Most of the South African players were fatigued, I would tell you. I looked at Teboho Mokoena in the game against Zimbabwe, even against Cameroon; he was not the Teboho we know. Heโs tired. And some of the players, I could also tell that they are tired because they played [CAF] Champions League, but that’s not an excuse.”
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