AFCON 2023: South Africa Coach Hugo Broos Gives Reasons for Loss to Mali

• South Africa started their AFCON campaign with defeat
• Bafana Bafana suffered a 2-0 loss to the Eagles of Mali
• Coach Hugo Broos knows exactly why his team suffered

South Africa coach Hugo Broos was full of praise for his young team despite suffering a defeat in their first game of the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations against Mali.

Bafana Bafana missed a first-half penalty and paid for it dearly after conceding two goals in the second half to kick-start their campaign for a second AFCON title with a defeat to the Eagles.

Speaking after the game, Broos claimed that the missed penalty and Mali’s physical dominance caused his South African team the game despite their first-half dominance, FARPost reports.

“Firstly, is missing the penalty, and secondly is the physical power. Those reasons made us lose the game today.

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“But the performance of South Africa was good, and I think if we scored the penalty, the game should have been different, but it’s okay.”

Bafana Bafana will hope to bounce back when they tackle Namibia in their next Group E game, as a loss could mean an early exit from the competition for the South Africans.

Tau’s penalty miss too costly

Meanwhile, Al Ahly forward, Percy Tau, could have been the hero for South Africa, but the former Mamelodi Sundowns star threw away Bafana Bafana’s best chance against Mali.

Tau ballooned his spot-kick over the bar after VAR had awarded Hugo Broos’ team a first-half penalty when Sikou Niakate received a yellow card for elbowing Evidence Makgopa in the face within the penalty area.

The South Africans struggled to pick up the tempo, regretting wasted opportunities in the first half, especially Tau's missed penalty, as they eventually lost 2-0 to Mali.

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Tau misses first penalty at AFCON

Earlier, Sports Brief reported Al Ahly striker, Percy Tau, became the first player to miss a penalty in the ongoing 2023 Africa Cup of Nations, leaving an awful imprint.

The former Brighton and Hove Albion winger had a chance to give South Africa the lead in their Group E opener against Mali, but his shot went wide.

Prior to Percy Tau's attempt, three penalties had been flawlessly converted, with Egypt and Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah converting the last penalty awarded when he netted in stoppage time to salvage a draw for the Pharaohs against Mozambique on January 14.