South Africa made a gigantic step towards the 2026 Fifa World Cup following back-to-back wins in their last two qualifiers.
They started with a 2-0 win over Lesotho in Mzansi before beating Benin by the same margin on Tuesday night in Abidjan, Ivory Coast. Nigeria and Rwanda drawing against Zimbabwe and Lesotho, respectively means Hugo Broos' men are favourites to advance from Group C.
Bafana Bafana are currently on 13 points, five more than Benin and Rwanda who are on eight, while Nigeria have seven. With four games to go, chances are high that Mzansi will be playing their first World Cup since 2010 when they hosted it.
The Belgian tactician is happy with his team and the consistency they have managed to create over the years. However, he has warned against complacency that might work against the team, especially in the remaining fixtures.
Everything not already done! – Broos
“I think, first of all, we did a good analysis of the opponent. Secondly, I think the players did what we asked them. We knew where we could be dangerous against this team, Benin,” he said after the recent win.
“It is a good team, but we did good today keeping the ball and waiting for the right moments. In the first half, we could not really do anything, but in the second half, it started being easy. We could score the second time, and I said to the bench, my assistant, that if we score once, we will win the game. And I think it was like that. We dominated the game, and I think we deserved to win.
“We are not afraid anymore of who plays against us. The only thing we have to do is hard work like we did till now. I'm not saying that everything is already done. We are in a good position now, but I think with the group that we have, if we do not do stupid things, we are very close to World Cup qualification,” Broos concluded.
