Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos was left stunned and disappointed after his side’s goalless draw against Eswatini in an international friendly clash on Friday night in Soweto.
Broos described the performance by a full-strength Bafana as a “disaster” as they were held to a frustrating draw by a nation ranked 144 in the world at FNB Stadium.
The match was part of Bafana’s preparations for the upcoming 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers in November and the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations in January.
Bafana’s display against eSwatini offered little hope that they will be able to compete in the upcoming challenges. They struggled to create clear-cut chances against a side they were expected to easily defeat.
Hugo Broos expressed disbelief at his team’s performance, saying that he did not recognise his own players on the pitch.
BROOS LEFT BEMUSED BY BAFANA DISPLAY
“There were many feelings that went through my body during the game and now after the game,” said Broos. “Frustration, anger, disbelief.
“I didn’t believe what I saw in the first half and also the second half. But in the first half, we played very badly, I think we had one chance to score in 90 minutes against, again, with all due respect, Eswatini. It was a disaster. It was very bad.
“And we were lucky that we played today against the team of that level. Otherwise, it should be a disaster, it should’ve been a disaster. I didn’t recognise my team.
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“We tried changing something during the half-time and hoping that things would be better. But we went down playing 90 minutes on the same low level.
“It’s unbelievable when three months ago, you saw that team playing against Morocco. It’s unbelievable four or five months ago, you saw that team playing against Liberia.
“You can’t believe your eyes when you see that. There was no passion; we lost nearly every duel, and we played far from our opponents. And if we were unlucky, Eswatini would score.
Bafana will travel to Ivory Coast for their last international friendly before the World Cup qualifiers against face Benin and Rwanda in November.
Broos’ troops are scheduled to take on Ivory Coast, the 2023 AFCON hosts, on Tuesday evening in Abidjan.