By Michael Madyira
Bafana Bafana left for Ivory Coast on Thursday morning with coach Hugo Broos brushing off Wednesday’s uninspiring 0-0 international friendly draw with Lesotho.
South Africa fired blanks against their less-fancied opponents at Lucas Moripe Stadium and settled for a result that could be morale-sapping ahead of the Africa Cup of Nations finals.
But their coach is unperturbed as they prepare to face Mali, neighbours Namibia, and Tunisia in Group E at the biennial tournament.
“It wasn’t bad but it wasn’t good either,” Broos told Safa media.
“As I said before the game, this was a preparation match. We had some hard work in the last few days and I think we needed a little bit more freshness to beat Lesotho.”
He said he wasn’t unhappy because everyone had the opportunity to play.
“We did what we wanted to do and we saw what we wanted to see,” he said.
The Bafana coach said they would have liked to win the game.
“As I said before the game, this was not even a friendly match for me. It’s a preparation game, but we would have liked to win, that’s for sure,” he said.
After concerns that Mothobi Mvala could be left behind due to a groin strain, the Mamelodi Sundowns player was surprisingly included in the contingent travelling to Ivory Coast.
Bafana team doctor Dr Tshepo Molobi declared that there was “no need to rule him out” and they will continue to monitor the centre-back.
Bafana are expected to arrive at their base in Korhogo, Ivory Coast on Thursday at 8 pm (South African Standard Time).
They open their Afcon Group E campaign against Mali on 16 January.
Pictured above: Safa president Danny Jordaan addressed Bafana Bafana players before they left for Ivory Coast on Thursday morning.
Image source: Bafana Bafana
