Bafana Bafana soared to the top of Group C with a hard-fought 2-1 win over Benin on Saturday.
The encounter at the Moses Mabhida Stadium, Durban, opened South Africa’s 2026 Fifa World Cup qualifiers’ account.
By their standards, the Durban supporters disappointed and did not come in large numbers, as expected. But the few who came out created a wonderful atmosphere in the iconic arena as Bafana huffed and puffed against a Benin side that was there for the taking.
Truly speaking, Bafana should have spanked the visitors hard, but they wasted a litany of scoring chances. They allowed the Cheetahs back into the game when they were struggling for some breathing air.
Coach Hugo Broos will have to push his players very hard in their next matches because goal difference will play a major role when the group is decided at the end.
Percy Tau opened the scoring as early as the first minute when he chipped the ball over the advancing Benin goalkeeper Kassifa Allagbe. This after some good work from Teboho Mokoena in midfield, who unleashed a delicious pass that sliced the Benin defence.
But the South African relaxed and allowed the visitors to attack them, instead of going for the throat. Benin surged forward and troubled the home side, but they could not get the ball over the line.
Khuliso Mudau increased the lead when he blasted the ball into the net following Allagbe’s mistake on the stroke of half-time.
Against run of play
In the second half, SA kept possession but did not trouble the visitors. And against the run of play, Benin launched a counterattack and reduced the deficit when Steve Mounie scored with a neat half-volley.
Tau missed a couple of chances that would have given SA a comfortable win. However, his overall performance was enough to earn him man-of-the-match accolades.
Benin will stay in Durban where they will be hosted by Lesotho for their second Group C match on Tuesday. Lesotho have opted to use Moses Mabhida for their home match as Setsoto Stadium in Maseru no longer meets Fifa standards.
