Femi Solaja
Ahead of their 2026 World Cup qualifying clash with Nigeria on June 10, South Africa Coach, Hugo Broos, has dared Super Eagles, insisting that his team is not afraid of any African team.
The Bafana Bafana have improved since 2021, when Broos took over as head coach. The Belgian has built the team around home-based players, and they have achieved a good level of success as a result.
In the last Africa Cup of Nations, they perform well, finishing third after losing to Nigeria in the semi-final. They even beat 2022 World Cup finalists Morocco in the run-up to their bronze-medal finish.
During this international break, the Bafana Bafana returned to action for the first time since the AFCON third-place game against DR Congo, and they had games against Andorra and Algeria.
In the first game against Andorra, in which Broos used majorly new players, they drew 1-1. And in the second game against Algeria on Tuesday, most of their stars returned to the starting lineup, and the game eventually ended 3-3.
The two friendly games were the last games for South Africa before their World Cup qualifying fixture against Nigeria in June, and Broos is currently satisfied with the level that his team is playing at. He believes that with the results they have gotten from their previous games, there is no need to fear any African opposition.
“We played against a very strong team, but I do not think there was much difference between the quality of our game and the quality of the game in Algeria,” Broos told local media in South Africa.
“That means we have progressed in the last few months. We already showed that in the AFCON, and we did it again against Algeria. So, I don’t think we have to be afraid anymore of playing against any team in Africa.”
Meanwhile, the Super Eagles are still trying to find their feet after Jose Peseiro left the coaching position at the end of February. Finidi George, the interim coach, led Nigeria to a win against Ghana and a loss to Mali, and no one knows who will lead the team against South Africa as the Nigerian football
federation is busy searching for suitable replacement for Peseiro.
