Mosimane weighs in on Bafana’s AFCON group and chances

As they will meet Namibia, Mali, and Tunisia at AFCON, ex-Bafana Bafana coach Pitso Mosimane says the group is manageable as he weighs in on the team’s chances.

Mosimane believes Group E is not tough and shares his thoughts on coach Hugo Broos’ side’s AFCON chances.

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The seasoned mentor who also coached Mamelodi Sundowns and Al Ahly believes Bafana can be able to qualify for the AFCON knockout stages

Bafana open their AFCON account against Mali on January 16 and Mosimane backs the 1996 African champions to achieve the desired results.

MOSIMANE WEIGHS IN ON BAFANA’S AFCON CHANCES

Mosimane was part of the Bafana technical team as he served as an assistant coach to Carlos Alberto Parreira before taking charge as a head coach after the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

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“To be honest, I haven’t been watching Bafana for a very long time. I know the results of their previous games, but I just haven’t been watching them,” Mosimane told Sunday World.

“Making it out of the group stages will be difficult, we are in a group of death. We have Tunisia, Mali, and Namibia are going to create a lot of problems for us.

“But South Africa always rises to the occasion, remember they beat Egypt [in the 2019 Afcon] so they can make it out of the group stages, but it will be tough.”

BROOS REACTS TO BAFANA’S AFCON DRAW

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As The South African also reported, Broos was left happy with the draw results and expressed hope that he can guide the team beyond the group stages.

The draw was conducted in October and Bafana now have less than a month to prepare for the premier continental showpiece to be staged in Cote d’Ivoire next month.

“Honestly, I am not really unhappy [at the draw], especially when you see the teams we were presented with,” Broos said at the time.

“Mali and Tunisia are both big teams for sure, but I preferred them to Senegal or Ivory Coast – which is very good for us.

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“And then Namibia is a team we know very well, so I think if we achieve our best level, we can go through the group stages.”

Meanwhile, Broos has already announced his preliminary squad which consists of 50 players as he prepares for the AFCON tourney.

The Belgian mentor is expected to announce his final Bafana squad on December 28 with the camp beginning in Stellenbosch on January 4.

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