Coach Hugo Broos revealed that he did not expect the national team to make it as far as it did in the AFCON.
Speaking to the media in Abidjan, Ivory Coast on Monday, Broos described this AFCON as fantastic.
“It’s very difficult to put in words but to be honest, I didn’t expect that. Whenever we have a draw, I would always tell the boys that we have a difficult group, but it is possible, we can go through,” said Broos.
Broos said he was unsure when the team went up against Morrocco because ‘normally when you go against that team, you are out, but he felt the confidence in the group.
“We beat Morrocco a few months before, so I told them that it was possible to beat them again and the guys also knew that it was possible. When we won against Morrocco, I told them that we have the potential to reach the final.” said Broos.
Bafana Bafana ultimately took third place at AFCON 2023, after beating DR Congo 6-5 on penalties. Before that South Africa lost to Nigeria in the semi-finals, also on penalties after putting up a hard fight.
South Africa’s Ronwen Williams was named goalkeeper of the tournament after keeping more clean sheets than any showstopper with five, in addition to his six penalty saves in shootouts against Cape Verde and DR Congo, while Bafana Bafana walked away with the fair play award and received their bronze medals at the Stade Olympique Alassane Quattara.
