- Broos has attracted criticism
- Hits back, saying critics are not fair
- Confident Bafana will qualify for Afcon
WHAT HAPPENED? Since he took over the national side, the Belgian coach has regularly received criticism. The former Cameroon coach has been slammed not only for the team’s performances but also for his squad selection.
His criticism of the Premier Soccer League has also not been received well in certain quarters, but he feels justified in his stance.
WHAT HAS BEEN SAID: "About the critics, when you’ve got 35 years in doing the job, you know that it happens," Broos is quoted as saying.
"The only thing that was frustrating for me was that it was not fair. It’s not fair when you lose 5-0 to France, saying ‘humiliation’ and ‘the coach has to be fired’ and so on.
"We played against the world champions, and everybody forgot that. We played a very good campaign in the qualifiers, and we lost one game, yes an important game against Ghana [but] Ghana is one of the top teams in Africa, France are the world champions.
"We played after that against Morocco, one of the top teams in Africa. They are going to the World Cup. There was no player in the selection that plays in the domestic league; now, for the [World Cup] selection, there are three, I think. The rest are playing in Europe.
"This is not fair asking, when you’re building a new team, ask that you beat those teams, therefore, I was frustrated in June and I said some things and I will repeat them again because I feel that was the truth.
"But that doesn’t mean that I have enough of that, not at all, I want to prove something, [which is] why I’m here and I’m confident. I’m confident in myself, and we will qualify for Afcon, in March, as you will see!
"Critics are not so easy to accept because it motivates you sometimes, but they have to be fair. That was not the case."
THE BIGGER PICTURE: After failing to qualify for the 2022 World Cup finals, Broos is expected to steer Bafana to the 2023 Afcon finals in Ivory Coast.
WHAT NEXT FOR SOUTH AFRICA? Bafana will face Mozambique on November 17 in a friendly and Angola three days later.