Shots at Nigeria? Broos slams Bafana ‘snitches’ – ‘A lot of lobbying behind the scenes’

Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos feels rival teams in their World Cup qualification group are behind their three-point deductions from FIFA.

South Africa felt the full impact of their earlier blunder when Teboho Mokoena was fielded against Lesotho on March 21 at a time he was supposed to be suspended for the match as they were slapped with sanctions.

The FIFA Disciplinary Chamber delivered the ruling on South Africa on Monday with Bafana Bafana docked three points which saw them tumble from top spot with a three-point lead to second, level with Benin, but with an inferior goal difference.

Bafana coach surprised at FIFA’s decision

However, the manner in which the matter was handled has left Broos feeling that there was an outside hand pulling the strings as it took so long before the case was opened while Lesotho did not lodge a complaint as they were time-barred by the time they learned of South Africa’s blunder.

“I did not expect it and certainly not the way it went,” Broos said on SABC on Thursday. “The committee of sanctions was three times together in the period of the Lesotho game and then three weeks ago. They were three times together and in the three times, South Africa was not mentioned.”

Broos believes one of South Africa’s rivals is behind the scheme as his team looked to have been off the hook until late last month when the matter was opened and a verdict delivered after less than two weeks.

Who is Broos suspecting over the sanctions?

“And when they had the last meeting, we got a letter from FIFA that the case was reopened,” added Broos. “Very strange. Why did it not happen in the previous sanction meetings of FIFA? So that means there has been a lot of lobbying behind the scenes.”

“How can you have three meetings of committee of sanctions and don’t talk about South Africa and then suddenly, there is a letter from FIFA coming?”

Of their Group C rivals, Lesotho and Nigeria were the most vocal over the issue with the two nations publicly calling on FIFA to “do the right thing” by punishing South Africa even if the window to lodge a complaint had closed so as to set a precedent, and the world football governing body acted belatedly.