Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos says that what he saw at training ahead of the match against Morocco has given him confidence that his charges will perform well against the Atlas Lions on Saturday afternoon.
Bafana will face Morocco, Africa’s number one ranked country at the FNB Stadium in the final round of the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers. The game is a dead rubber, since both countries have qualified but a lot is at stake with the two coaches having brought their best players for the encounter.
“This is a good opportunity for the boys. The team can learn a lot from playing against Morocco. This is a good test, and we can compare this match with the first leg in Rabat last year. What I saw at training this week has given me confidence. We can make progression and get to the level where we want to be at the Afcon in January. You can be sure that our players will be motivated because I saw them – if you’re not motivated for such a big game then you should not be playing football,” Broos told the media.
For the first time in a long time, Bafana will play in front of a decent crowd at the gigantic FNB Stadium. Tickets have been selling like hotcakes and about 50 000 supporters are expected at the venue.
“We have been playing in front of empty seats in the last two years, and it’s not nice. We need fans in the stadiums, we need their support in big matches like this because we can do well. We are playing for prestige, both teams, there’s a lot of motivation for our players especially because it would be great to beat the best team in the continent,” he added.
Broos was also happy to report a clean bill of health in the team – something that he says is happening for the first time. All the players, including Percy Tau, have reported for camp and ready to face the Moroccans. Morocco are also bringing their top guns in Hakimi Achraf, Yassine Bounou, Hakim Ziyech and Sofyan Amrabat and South African fans will be eager to watch them in action.
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