By Rorisang Rampheteng:
Bafana Bafana supporters have called for head coach Hugo Broos to go following the team’s 2–1 defeat to Cameroon on Sunday evening at the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON). The loss has sparked widespread criticism from fans, many of whom believe the team underperformed at a crucial stage of the tournament.
Broos’ tenure and mixed results
Hugo Broos took charge of Bafana Bafana in 2021 and has enjoyed some success during his tenure. He guided the national team to a bronze medal at the 2023 AFCON, one of South Africa’s best performances in recent years. Under his leadership, Bafana Bafana has also shown improvement in World Cup qualification matches.
However, despite these achievements, many supporters feel Broos is no longer the right coach to lead the team, especially after what they describe as a “disappointing performance” in the last-16 match.
Fans react on social media
Supporters recently took to social media platform X (formerly Twitter) to voice their anger, with calls for Broos to leave the team growing louder.
President Samora Goated criticised the team’s preparation, saying Bafana Bafana failed to beat a side that had limited time to prepare for the match. “Hugo Broos must go. We failed to win against a team that had done very little preparation, yet we still lost. Our preparation games were against poor teams, and that is why we ended up losing a match like this.
“We have always questioned the friendly matches we played, but because *madala* was obsessed with maintaining a winning record, we kept playing lower-ranked teams. Today, we were exposed to real quality,” said Goated.
Criticism over friendly matches
Criticism of Broos continued, with Hlabirinto condemning the coach for scheduling international matches against what he described as “weak opponents”. He urged Broos to stop preparing for major tournaments by facing teams such as Zimbabwe and Zambia, and instead, he must challenge Bafana Bafana against stronger opposition.
“We must stop this nonsense of preparing for major tournaments using useless opponents like Zimbabwe and Zambia. Instead, we should be testing ourselves against the best teams in Africa and the world,” said Hlabirinto.
The team is on the way home
Meanwhile, national team spokesperson Mminawa Ntloko confirmed that Bafana Bafana will depart Morocco this afternoon and return to South Africa on Wednesday morning. “Bafana Bafana’s travel itinerary to South Africa is as follows: we depart from Marrakech, Morocco, today (Tuesday), and we are expected to arrive at OR Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg on Wednesday morning at around 04:50,” Ntloko said. – @NewsSA_Online
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