ABafana Bafana bazithembile - kodwa bayilumkele iMorocco, utsho uHugo Broos!
Iqela lesizwe loMzantsi Afrika lijongene nowona mdlalo onzima kwiAfrica Cup of Nation - kodwa lizithembile. ABafana Bafana baza kothulana phezulu neMorocco emdlalweni ekulindeleke ukuba utake iintlantsi eStade Laurent Pokou Stadium, eSan Pedro, namhlanje ngentsimbi yeshumi ebusuku.
Iqela likaHugo Broos lijongana neMorocco emdlalweni weTop 16 emva kokuba livale umjikelo wokuqala lihleli kwindawo yesibini kuGroup E obukhokelwe yiMali. Umdlalo ujongwe ngamehlo abomvu yiAfrika yonke ngoba kudlala aBafana Bafana abakhe bayibetha iMorocco kunyaka ophelileyo kanye emva kokuqhuba kakuhle kwayo kwiFifa World Cup obibanjelwe eQatar ekupheleni kuka2022.
Okubaluleke ngaphezulu kwako konke emdlalweni wanamhlanje kukuba omabini amazwe afuna ukugqithela kumjikelo olandelayo weAfrica Cup of Nations eqhubekayo kwilizwe laseCôte d’Ivoire. Umdlalo wasebusuku namhlanje uza kuvavanya amandla waBafana Bafana xa bedibene noompondozihlanjiwe bezwekazi le-Afrika.
"Siwulungele ngokupheleleyo umdlalo. Emva kokuba iMorocco iqhube kakuhle kwitumente yehlabathi eQatar, ndingatsho ukuba siyayazi into esijongene nayo," utshilo uBroos ozithembileyo. Sayibetha iMorocco sidlala nayo eGoli.
"Lo nto isinika ithemba nokuzithemba. Kodwa ke izinto zahlukile ngoku futhi nabadlali bayo bohlukile. Sobe sizikhohlise ngokucinga ukuba izinto ziza kuhamba ngendlela efanayo," utshilo umqeqeshi. Omnye wabadlali abaziqaqambise kakhulu kwiAfcon, uSphephelo Sithole, waleke umsundulo ngelithi umoya wabadlali uphezulu phambi kowona mdlalo onzima kwiAfcon.
"Siyayazi into efunekayo kuthi. Umdlalo esijongene nawo mkhulu, lo nto siyiqonda kakuhle. "Siza kudlala ngendlela engazange ibonwe ngoba sifuna ukugqithela kumjikelo olandelayo," utshilo uSithole odlala esiswini noTebogo Mokoena.
UMzantsi Afrika ungadlala umdlalo ngaphandle kwabadlali ababini ababalulekileyo, uMthobi Mvala noKhuliso Mudau. Bobabini bonzakele emdlalweni ogqithileyo obuphakathi koMzantsi Afrika neTunisia ehlambe ijezi kwangoko yodwa kuGroup E. Iintatheli ebezizalise indlu izolo zimbuzile uBroos ngabadlali abonzakeleyo.
"Andikwazi ukuwuphendula umdlalo wenu okwangoku. Ndiza kufumana ingxelo epheleleyo koogqirha emva kokuzilolonga kwethu namhlanje (ngoMvulo). Imeko yabo ndakuyazi ngelo xesha," utshilo umqeqeshi. ABafana Bafana bancwase ukothusa elinye iqela elikhulu ngokufanayo nango2019 ababetha ngaye iYiphutha phambi kwabalandeli bayo.