Orlando Pirates defender Tapelo Xoki has given a thumbs-up to Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos for being transparent with the team amid the Tunisia national team job links.
Broos was reported by Tunisian media stating that the 71-year-old has agreed to succeed Jalal El Kadri as the Tunisian national team coach ahead of the 2026 Fifa World Cup qualifiers in June.
Broos clears the air, assures his charges
In a video that went viral on social media this week after their six-goal thriller against Algeria, Broos was heard addressing the Bafana players and entire staff. He said that there was nothing concrete on the Tunisia reports.
“What you have heard and what you have read, there is nothing,” Broos told the players.
“And why should I leave such a good team as you?” he added, to rapturous applause.
Xoki says team is upbeat and relieved
Xoki spoke to the media upon their arrival at the OR Tambo International Airport on Thursday. He said it was important that Broos cleared the air and was open about the reports to the team. The star, who made his Bafana debut in their 1-1 draw against Andorra, was upbeat.
“It was huge for the dressing room [to be addressed by Broos] just to make sure that it is stable, And I am sure you also saw the reaction from the guys,” Xoki told Sunday World.
“I think this group of players has been together for some time. You can see the bond. It makes it easy for some of us [who] are new into the squad to gel into the team.
“There is a lot of brotherhood, unity, and selflessness from the players. So, once you have a coach that also leads that, it was important that he made sure he cleared the air. Which he did in the dressing room. We are now looking forward to the world cup qualifiers in June.”
No negative impact on team camp morale
On whether the reports might have had any negative impact on the camp, Xoki said Broos continued to reassure them that he is fully committed to the Bafana project.
“The reports did not really destabilise anything in the dressing room. This is because some of us didn’t catch the wind of it. But just for the coach to clear things up was a great thing for the team.
“Yes, the news made the rounds in the camp as soon as we saw it on social media. But it didn’t really destabilise anything. Because the coach constantly made sure that he reassures us of his commitment to the national team.”
Bafana return to action in June when they resume their 2026 World Cup qualifiers against Nigeria and Zimbabwe.
