Former Club Brugge head coach Hugo Broos under pressure with Bafana Bafana

South Africa’s Belgian head coach Hugo Broos is coming under increasing pressure as the side face an uphill battle to qualify for the next AFCON tournament. The former Club Brugge, RWDM, KV Oostende, Zulte Waregem and Kortrijk head coach took over the Bafana Bafana job in the summer of 2021, with a contract running until 2026. Broos, who won three Belgian league titles as a head coach, was also in charge of the depleted Cameroon side that won AFCON in 2017.

The side have not won yet during qualification, having lost to Morocco and drawn 2-2 at home to Liberia. Both of their goals came from former Westerlo striker Lyle Foster, now of Burnley. After the 2-2 draw with the West African side, Broos initially refused to speak to the media. Instead, he sent out assistant coach Helman Mkhalele. The former Bafana Bafana international, part of the 1996 AFCON winning side, was met with angry journalists who refused to ask him questions, demanding Broos appeared.

Eventually Mkhalele left and Broos did appear, but the Belgian was clearly still frustrated with the draw. He has since apologised for his conduct, but it has not lifted the pressure on him to get a positive result against Liberia next time around. The other side in South Africa’s qualification group is local rivals Zimbabwe.

GBeNeFN | Ben Jackson

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