'It was a good performance ... it was a pity it was only 1-1,' said the Bafana head coach on the draw with Czechia.
Bafana head coach Hugo Broos believes his side can beat South Korea and reach the last 32 of the Fifa World Cup finals. Picture: EPA/RONALD WITTEK
Bafana Bafana head coach Hugo Broos believes his side can beat South Korea in their final group match of the 2026 Fifa World Cup and reach the knockout rounds.
Must-win for Bafana
Bafana’s 1-1 draw with Czechia on Thursday in Atlanta means South Africa will automatically qualify for the last 32, if they can beat South Korea on Wednesday in Monterrey, and Czechia fail to beat Mexico.
“We didn’t want to count on someone else, we just have to win (against Korea),” Broos told television cameras after the game.
“It will be very difficult but if we play like we did today, with the same mentality, it is possible.”
Bafana fell behind early to Czechia, as they had done in their opening match against Mexico. The European side caught South Africa by surprise from a long throw that ended with Michal Sadilek slotting past Ronwen Williams.
“I was in the moment very angry,” Broos told SABC Sport.
“It was something we said in our analysis, that we have to be focused from the first minute of the game and it was not the case in that situation.
“We knew that their number 5 (Vladimir Coufal) throws the ball very far and we were not concentrated enough from the throw in. Then there was a pass in front of goal, and a goal. At that level you pay for those mistakes.”
Overall, however, Broos was pleased with his side’s performance, and critical of his opponents. Bafana levelled through a Teboho Mokoena penalty with seven minutes left on the clock.
Broos – ‘I am very proud’
“I am very proud of the team,” Broos told TV.
“If you see the reaction from the Mexico game, this is Bafana. We play good football and are aggressive and have chances but we also need a bit of luck. I am proud of the performance today. The Czech team are very powerful and tall so they just kick the ball in front and hope someone who is 1.95 metres tall gets the ball.
“But we did very well, we sometimes won the second ball. It was a good performance … it was a pity it was only 1-1.”
