South African coach Hugo Broos has fast become a surprising highlight at this year’s World Cup. The seventy-four-year-old professional soccer coach from Belgium, takes a no-nonsense approach to dealing with the sports news media. Broos has shut down questions about host country US’s President Donald Trump, called out what he saw as the favourable treatment of professional soccer place Lionel Messi and told critics back in South Africa to “shut up”.
All of that within a week of the tournament kicking off. “For those who still don’t know it, I do it my way,” he said after former South Africa players rounded on his team’s 2-0 loss to Mexico in the opening game. “I never listen to people who sometimes think that they are important enough to criticize the team. So when I’m going to see what they did before, I think it should be better that they shut up.” Broos, who has said he will step down at the end of the tournament, led South Africa to its first World Cup since it was host in 2010.
Broos is a firm disciplinarian which is necessary if you want to coach a professional national soccer team. He scored a triumph over the Mexicans and managed to keep South Africa in the tournament. Broos is a coach whose capabilities may just help Bafana Bafana to navigate its way through the World Cup to the finals. It is not the concern of coaches of National Teams to discuss what politicians like Trump are doing. Sports news reporters should not bother them with such questions. The focus for the coach should be on enabling his team to score goals. Politics has no place in professional sports and when Broos steps down after his tenure, he wants to leave a proud legacy on the pitch.
Bafana Bafana scored a 1 – 1 draw against Czechia in Atlanta, at Mercedes-Benz US Stadium on Thursday.
A point apiece keeps World Cup hopes alive for both teams ahead of the final games in Group A. South Africa managed to snatch a late equalizer through Teboho Mokoena’s penalty. But afterward Broos insisted his team deserved more, in part because of Czechia’s direct approach to the game. “Czechia is a physical team and they don’t like to play football or a passing game,” Broos said in his news conference. “It’s very straight, and they have the players for it. All the players are tall. So that means that for us it was very difficult with those high balls.”
South African resilience matched against the physique of the Czechs made for an intense match. It ended in stalemate due to one team (the Czechs) being reluctant with engaging with their opponents. The Czechs did not want to be the losing team. However, there may be a repeat of the match depending on how far either Bafana Bafana or the Czechs can make it this World Cup. Professional Football is a sport that relies on talent and skill as well as physique. How Broos plays his cards will determine how far he will be able to rally Bafana Bafana through this tournament. It promises to be no picnic.
Win or lose, South Africa will face some tough teams on the pitch.
Article written by:
Yacoob Cassim
Journalist at Radio Al Ansaar
