Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos has expressed dissatisfaction about his team’s performance during the international friendly against Jamaica.
This after Bafana were held to a 1-1 draw by the Reggae Boyz at Estadio Hidalgo in Pachuca in their final friendly game before the opening 2026 FIFA World Cup clash against co-hosts Mexico at the Estadio Azteca on Thursday.
Lyle Foster’s opener in the second half was cancelled out by Dwayne Atkinson.
After the game, Broos said the team would continue to work on their shortcomings in the coming days as he was not pleased with the performance he saw at Estadio Hidalgo.
“The performance was not what I expected. I think we have to analyse the game very well and see what was really wrong and try to make it better in the next few days so that we are ready for the first game against Mexico,” Broos told SAFA media.
“I thought we were close (to getting to where he wants the team to be before the opening match), but again, it was, for me, a disappointing game this afternoon. So, yes, I have to look at what went wrong. I think it was also a matter of mentality. We have to do more, much more, than what we did this afternoon to have good results in the World Cup in the next few weeks.”
‘Bafana were playing within themselves’
Jamaica coach Rudolph Speid felt that Bafana players did not unleash their full potential in the game because they did not “want to get injured and everybody wants to impress the coach” before the Mexico clash
“As it relates to South Africa, I think they were playing within themselves, though, because probably, you know, players don’t want to get injured and everybody wants to impress the coach,” he said.
“I didn’t think they were going for it as much as they could have. But playing against Mexico in the Azteca Stadium (in the opening match of the World Cup), there’s going to be 123,000 screaming Mexicans in there, I can tell you. They’ll probably overload it, they’re going to be pressing high up the pitch, especially in the first half. They’re going to be pressing very high in the first half, relentless pressing, but of course, the pressure will ease as the game goes along,” added Spied.
