South Africa are presented with an opportunity to play two extra home games in the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers as circumstances force neighboring countries Lesotho and Zimbabwe to stage their home games in Mzansi.
Due to the unavailability of stadiums that meet CAF standards in Lesotho and Zimbabwe, the two nations have staged their home games in Mzansi.
Bafana have five home games in the six-team Group C and will likely not travel outside of the country in September and October for away fixtures against Lesotho and Zimbabwe respectively.
Hugo Broos will lead Bafana in their fourth Group C fixture in their qualifying campaign on Tuesday night against The Warriors at Free State Stadium.
"We have to win it. All South Africans will not be happy if we don't win."
“We are on schedule if we win and that is the most important thing,” said Broos.
“It is a tough group and if we can make a plan and win all the games at home, you will be very close. The situation now is that we have two more home games.
“Lesotho and Zimbabwe don’t play in their country but maybe things can change. What that means is that [at the moment] we have seven home games now and seven multiplied by three is 21 points.
“I think we would qualify [if we get those points]. It is a challenge but it is possible. But it all starts with a victory against Zimbabwe. Let’s hope after the 90 minutes we will keep the three points in South Africa,” Broos added.
READ: Hugo Broos details Bafana Bafana’s challenging 20-hour travel to Nigeria
Meanwhile, Group C favourites, Nigeria, have dropped points in all of their qualifying matches so far as Benin clipped the Super Eagles’ wings on Monday night, beating them 2-1 in Abidjan.
This presents Bafana and Lesotho with a chance to take advantage of Nigeria’s shortcomings and gather maximum points against Rwanda and Zimbabwe respectively to maintain distance over the Super Eagles.
“I said last week that I should be happy with four points out of six. It is still possible, but it will not be easy,” said Broos.
“Zimbabwe lost 2-0 against Lesotho, the first goal was a mistake by the goalkeeper, the second was a nice goal and they had a third chance. And that was all for the rest of the game, it was Zimbabwe who were the better team.
“They are a tough team, it is always difficult for South Africa to play Zimbabwe, and it will not be different this time,” he added.
Bafana have only the cold to brave in World Cup clash against Zimbabwe
— Bafana Bafana (@BafanaBafana) June 10, 2024
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