The head coach of the South African national team, Hugo Broos, has reminisced about his team’s previous encounter with the Super Eagles of Nigeria, Soccernet.ng reports.
Bafana Bafana are set to face Nigeria for the 16th time at the Godswill Akpabio Stadium on June 7th as part of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers.
Ahead of this clash, the Super Eagles, under the guidance of Portuguese tactician Jose Peseiro, secured a victory during the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations tournament via a 4-2 penalty shootout to book a place in the final against Côte d’Ivoire.
According to the Belgian gaffer, the Super Eagles were wary of his team during the match, noting that Peseiro frequently instructed his players to adopt a more defensive posture.
“We were very, very close. We played a very good game. I saw during the game, the coach of Nigeria always telling his players ‘go back, go back’ because they were afraid to lose against us,” said the 73-year-old on SABC Sports.
After a penalty goal by Super Eagles vice-captain William Troost-Ekong, the South Africans mounted pressure on Nigeria’s defense, with Khuliso Mudau missing a crucial chance that could have changed the game’s outcome.
“I think one minute to the end, the big chance that Khuliso had, if he could have scored that goal, we were in the final. And as I said earlier, if we were in the final we had a chance against Ivory Coast,” Broos added.
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Broos has recently named his strongest squad to avenge their previous 2023 AFCON loss against Nigeria and will be aiming to take all three points home from Uyo.
