Outspoken Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos has once again induced controversy by blatantly asserting the overall standard of SA football is too mediocre for the national team to succeed.
Speaking in a media conference, designed to reflect on Bafana’s Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) qualifier defeat away to Morocco last Thursday at Safa House on Tuesday, Broos lambasted the poor quality of local football.
The Belgian insinuated SA was in real trouble if Percy Tau, who’s perceived to be the best player in the country, is struggling to knuckle down in a team like Al Ahly.
“The real problem of SA is that we don’t have those high-quality players like our last three opponents Ghana, France and Morocco. Let’s face the problem that the level of the PSL is not high enough for us [Bafana] to succeed. We don’t develop players of high quality. Our best player... I think you’ll agree, is Percy Tau,” said Broos.
“He has problems at his team Al Ahly. Even with a South African coach [Pitso Mosimane, who has just left the club] who wanted him, he doesn’t succeed there. There was an Al Ahly former player who said Percy Tau doesn’t have the quality to play in a team like Al Ahly, those are not my words.”
Broos is adamant the changing and chopping of coaches won’t really solve Bafana’s problems, suggesting a co-operation between all football stakeholders. Broos was tasked with qualifying for next year’s Afcon and the 2026 Fifa World Cup.
“If SA is not dealing with that and do what you’ve been doing in the past 20 years, firing the coaches and hoping that the next coach will have the results, that doesn’t solve the problem.
“I can be the 17th coach to be fired but the problem will still be there if it’s not fixed. We have to sit together with the league and everyone who’s involved in football and face the problem,” said Broos.
Broos is still confident Bafana will qualify for next year’s Afcon, targeting at least four points in the two games they’ll play against Liberia in Group K in September, having lost the pool’s opener to Morocco.
“I am confident we’ll qualify. We need at least four points against Liberia because if they beat Morocco they’ll have three points,” said Broos, who added they cancelled the scheduled friendly against Lesotho because they hoped to play Iran until the Asians dropped them at the 11th hour.
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