South Africa head coach Hugo Broos has said his players can be proud of their performance at the FIFA World Cup 2026, Completesports.com reports.
Bafana Bafana bowed out of the competition following a heart-breaking stoppage time 1-0 defeat to co-hosts Canada in a Round of 32 encounter at the Los Angeles Stadium on Sunday.
Broos Proud Of Bafana Bafana
Despite the painful exit, Broos urged the players to take pride in their achievement, insisting they had every reason to return home with their heads held high after reaching the World Cup knockout stage for the first time in the nation’s history.
“It was a difficult game but I knew beforehand [it would be so] because I analysed the opponent. They have two important [traits] in power and speed. We hoped we had an answer for that but it was not always the fact,” Broos told FIFA.
Read Also:Broos Blames South Africa’s World Cup 2026 Exit To Lack Of Speed, Power
“You saw situations in the game that we could not follow and the duels, man against man, we lost sometimes or most of the time. We have to work on power and speed in South Africa.
“I don’t have complaints about the mentality but I think we can look back on this tournament with happiness because we got to the second round. I don’t think anybody expected that before the tournament.”
South Africa’s Positive Impact
South Africa exceeded expectations at the World Cup, especially as it was their first appearance at the global finals since 2010.
“It is sore now because we wanted to win today. It’s a disappointment, it’s very quiet in the dressing room at the moment. But on the other side we have to be honest, we did very well for our first time in the World Cup after 26 years. We achieved the second round,” Broos added.
By Adeboye Amosu
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Source: Complete Sports
