Broos aims for perfect start to Afcon qualifiers

As confident as he is that they will record victories in both outings, Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos has sounded rather perturbed about the physical strength both Uganda and South Sudan possess.

Bafana face Uganda and South Sudan in Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) qualifiers at Orlando Stadium tomorrow and in Juba on Tuesday respectively. With Ronwen Williams still recovering from a shoulder injury, his Mamelodi Sundowns teammate Themba Zwane will captain Broos' side. Bafana's game against The Cranes kicks off at 6pm.

“We are confident and we believe in ourselves that we will start these Afcon qualifiers very well. It's very important, when you play qualifiers, to have a good start...when you have a good start you put pressure on your opponents and when you don't, it's just the opposite and we have to avoid that,'' Broos said.

“They [Uganda and South Sudan] are difficult teams to play against. They are teams who have much power, much height and they play with the heart. There are some good individuals in both teams, so that means we must be at our level best. We have the quality to win both games and we are confident but that doesn't mean we have to underestimate our opponents.”

Uganda are ranked 21st and 95th by CAF and Fifa respectively, while South Sudan are 47th in Africa and 169th globally. Bafana are 10th continentally and 57th in Fifa rankings. Broos' wish is to see Bafana remaining in the top 10 on the continent, eyeing the Afcon qualifiers to achieve that.

“With the quality we have and the status we have now, being ranked 10th in Africa, we want to try to stay there. We can stay there by getting good results in the next three months in Afcon qualifiers. I don't think we can be happy if we don't get six points from these two qualifiers,'' the Bafana mentor said.

Congo Brazzaville are Bafana's other opponents in this Group K of the 2025 Afcon qualifiers, facing them back-to-back next month.

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