NEWS: New faces impress Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos despite disappointing Andorra stalemate

An experimental Bafana came from a goal down to be held in a disappointing 1-1 draw against the 164th-ranked side during the FIFA Series in Annaba, Algeria on Thursday night.

The FIFA Series is a biennial invitational football competition.

Sekhukhune United forward Elias Mokwana scored on debut after 25 minutes to cancel out Andorra’s opener after just five minutes as attacker Ricard Betriu shocked Broos’s side.

Andorra’s goal resulted from an unforced error by goalkeeper Ricardo Goss when he failed to deal with a simple back pass, allowing the striker to put the ball in an empty net.

Coach Broos also gave debuts to Orlando Pirates duo Patrick Maswanganyi and Tapelo Xoki, as well as AmaZulu FC’s Mlondi Mbanjwa.

At the same time, players such as Goodman Mosele and Khanyisa Mayo made a return to the national team.

Broos said some of the unfamiliar faces raised their hands and are likely to be called back for the crucial FIFA World Cup qualifiers against Nigeria and Zimbabwe in June.  

“I’m satisfied, not with the result today, I would have liked to win but with the performance of this totally new team,” Broos said after the game.

“And I’m certainly satisfied with some players.

“They gave me much satisfaction and I think they are the right guys which we can count on, maybe for the next games that will follow in June and at the end of the year.”

The experienced Belgian tactician, who recently led Bafana to a bronze medal finish at the 2023 AFCON, said the match against Andorra was a huge learning curve for some inexperienced players.

“It was a good experience for the young guys who played for the first time against Andorra. I think they know now what the difference between the PSL (Premier Soccer League) and these kinds of games is.

“Even when you play against a team ranked 150 or something like that on the FIFA rankings. That was the goal of today, to give those players a chance to have that experience. Again, I’m satisfied.”

Bafana will face a tougher test when they come up against hosts Algeria at Nelson Mandela Stadium in Algiers on Tuesday at 23:00 (SA time).

Broos will most likely select his tried and tested troops, such as skipper Ronwen Williams, Teboho Mokoena, Grant Kekana, Themba Zwane, Aubrey Modiba and others for Tuesday’s clash.