South African Football Association (Safa) president Danny Jordaan has made it clear there will be no excuse for Bafana Bafana not to qualify for the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) to be held in the Ivory Coast in January/February 2024.
The tournament was supposed to have been held in June/July this year but was moved because of inclement weather conditions at that time of the year.
Jordaan has highlighted the importance of beating Liberia home and away and booking a place in the tournament. After losing 2-1 to Morocco in Rabat, coach Hugo Broos’ players are left with three matches (two against Liberia (in March) and the return match against Morocco in June. The Atlas Lions made history in Qatar when they became the first African country to reach the semi-finals of a Fifa World Cup.
Group K has three teams Liberia, Morocco and SA after Zimbabwe was suspended by Fifa for political interference. The South Africans are expected to pick up maximum points against Liberia and then qualify for Afcon. Liberia are the whipping boys in the group.
“We have given the coach a lot of friendly matches to prepare, otherwise it would have been about nine months without a match. So, there is no excuse. After Afcon, we will start with the 2026 Fifa World Cup qualifiers for the tournament that will be co-hosted by the US, Mexico and Canada,” said Jordaan.
“If you look back, you must remember that the Fifa men’s and women’s World Cups in 2018 and 2019 were not good for African teams but the debate has now shifted after the recent World Cup in Qatar after Morocco made history by reaching the semi-finals. Now there will be a lot of interest in African teams and we need to be there and to take part. Our bidding team will also be in New Zealand for our bid to host the 2027 Women’s Cup in South Africa.
“We want to bring the Women’s World Cup to South Africa – we have the world-class facilities and the stadiums to host the tournament. This will be a seriously, hectic and challenging year for Safa,” said Jordaan.
Broos’ team have done relatively well in the international friendlies they have played except when they were walloped 5-0 by France in March. They also played against Guinea, Botswana, Sierra Leone, Botswana and Angola – so Broos and his technical team must be ready to wrap up the qualifiers or face the consequences thereof.
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