Why Hugo Broos wanted to quit Bafana Bafana

Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos has reflected on his big trials and tribulations before Afcon 2023’s bronze medal.

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HUGO BROOS WANTED TO QUIT BAFANA BAFANA

According to the 71-year-old Belgian, something about the South African nation and Bafana results did not add up.

The former Cameroon coach had an idea to unluck the potential but could not imagine the criticism that was coming his way.

“I thought about it [quitting] because after the game against Morocco away [a 2-1 Afcon qualifying defeat in Rabat in July 2022], I went home for five weeks and spoke to my former assistant coach in Belgium,” Broos said via TimesLIVE.

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“We spoke about what we were going to do, but I didn’t want to quit.

“There was something that said to me, ‘go now when everything is negative and there is nothing good,’ but there was [also] a voice that said, ‘go on.’

“The voice said, ‘believe in what you believe in because it will happen,’ and it happened, but I was close to quitting.

“I came to South Africa with something in my mind, but from the beginning I couldn’t understand why, in a country such as this, there was something that was not normal with the results of the national team.

“This is a country that has to show better results than what they showed over the last 10 years.

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“I thought, and I was sure, that there was potential in South Africa, but I didn’t know much about South African football, and I needed time,” the Bafana mentor continued.

“But once you start and see that it is possible you come to South Africa to play Afcon and qualify for the World Cup and we were close [to reaching the 2022 World Cup].

“We had to play another game in World Cup qualifiers [when he was thinking of leaving, against Ghana away], but all was possible and that gave the energy to go on.

TOO MANY CRITICS

“But after France and Morocco, I was thinking about quitting because the criticism was too much.

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“What people said was too much, but I have always been a winner and I wanted to leave South Africa with something,” the Bafana tactician confessed.

“[And then] suddenly everything falls in the right place, you start winning, qualify for Afcon, the players start to believe.

“You win against Morocco in the last group game [of the qualifiers, at FNB Stadium in June this year] and suddenly there is a belief that maybe we can do something.

“My relationship with the players is good, their relation with me is very good, and this is the basis of good results,” the Bafana tactician concluded.