2026 WCQ: South Africa Coach Hugo Broos Makes Bold Confession About Super Eagles
- The Super Eagles of Nigeria will face Bafana Bafana in a crucial 2026 World Cup qualifier match next month
- Nigeria must defeat South Africa to retain the chances of qualifying for the tournament after a poor start
- Bafana Bafana head coach Hugo Broos has warned his team not to be complacent in their remaining games
South Africa head coach Hugo Broos has made a bold confession about the Super Eagles of Nigeria ahead of their crucial 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifier next month.
Nigeria will return to action for the qualifier with a match against Rwanda and the Godswill Akpabio International Stadium, Uyo, before facing South Africa at Bloemfontein.
Source: Twitter
Eric Chelle's team must secure victory in both matches, particularly against Bafana Bafana, otherwise their hopes of qualifying will be permanently ended.
Nigeria started the qualifying campaign with draws against Lesotho and Zimbabwe, followed by a draw against South Africa and a loss against Benin Republic.
Chelle's first match in charge was a 2-0 win over Rwanda in Kigali, but another draw against Zimbabwe in Uyo dealt a serious blow to the team's chances.
Super Eagles have seven points after six matches and are six points adrift of Group C leaders South Africa, who have 13 points from the same number of matches.
Broos makes confession about Nigeria
South Africa head coach Broos held a press conference after announcing his final 23-man squad for the matches against Lesotho and Nigeria.
The manager claimed that Nigeria remains a top team despite their poor start and can still qualify for the World Cup with 12 points left to fight for.
“We knew from the start that the team we had to beat was Nigeria. Even though they started badly, they can still qualify,” Broos said as quoted by Iol.
He urged his team not to let complacency set in, particularly against Lesotho, which they beat 2-0 earlier in the campaign, as the same team forced Nigeria to a draw.
Source: Getty Images
“The biggest mistake the South African players can make is underestimating Lesotho,” he added.
“Remember this Lesotho team held Nigeria to a draw in Nigeria, so we must not make the mistake of underestimating them. We beat Lesotho before, so we must beat them again.”
South Africa will take on their neighbours, Lesotho, before facing Nigeria, and a win in both matches will move them up to 19 points and closer to qualifying for the World Cup.
As noted by Briefly Sports, Broos announced his final squad today with the notable exclusion of Percy Tau and other top stars in the PSL.
However, he named Ime Okon, a South African-born defender who has a Nigerian father, and this raised concerns among Mzansi fans on social media.
Broos speaks about possible three-point deduction
Legit.ng reported that Hugo Broos spoke about the possible three-point deduction for fielding the ineligible Teboho Mokoena against Lesotho.
Broos claimed that FIFA must act by the rules as the window for lodging complaints had passed and is surprised why Nigeria are pushing after six months.
Source: Legit.ng
