Bafana's performance in their 1-0 Africa Cup of Nations defeat to Ivory Coast on Monday had its fair share of negatives. Sowetan breaks down what Bafana struggled with against the Elephants, as they now look forward to facing Namibia at the same venue on Friday.

Playing too deep

Stuart Baxter conceded at the post-match press conference that his charges sat back for quite a while. "I thought at the start of the game - the first 15 minutes, we were quite slow in our decision-making and in a way, we allowed Ivory Coast to come into a better redeem."

In fact, it wasn't just in the first 15 minutes, because Bafana couldn't really cause problems for the West Africans for most of the first half. The only time Bafana looked a real threat was in the second half, especially after conceding, because at this stage they were looking to get back into the game.

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Too many back passes

With Bafana playing mostly in their own half, they played too many back passes to goalkeeper Ronwen Williams, who it must be said was outstanding, but in one situation he passed the ball to the opposition in trying to start play from the back, which could have resulted in Bafana conceding.

Midfield struggles

The likes of Kamohelo Mokotjo really battled to take the game to the opposition, with Ivory Coast's Franck Kessie thwarting their attempts. Generally, teams that struggle to dominate the midfield area are hardly a threat and for Bafana, this proved true on the day.

Strength (body check)

West Africans are bigger than Bafana Bafana players in terms of body frame and even one of Bafana Bafana's tallest players, Lebo Mothiba, was no match for Ivorian big defenders and midfielders.

- Mabasa is in Egypt for the Africa Cup of Nations courtesy of Betway South Africa