Ex Bafana Bafana Star Backs Nigeria to Defeat South Africa: 'They Will Punish Us'

• Junior Khanye is sure it is the end of the road for South Africa at AFCON 2023
• Bafana Bafana will take on Nigeria in the semi-finals on Wednesday
• South Africa is bidding to win the AFCON for the second time

Former South Africa Under-23 star, Junior Khanye, is backing Nigeria to defeat Bafana Bafana in the semi-finals of the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations when both teams meet on Wednesday, February 7.

South Africa has had an impressive run at the competition in Ivory Coast, making the last four for the first time in 24 years after defeating Cape Verde 2-1 via penalties in the quarter-finals.

According to GOAL, Khanye is convinced Bafana Bafana will not prevail against the Super Eagles judging from their outing against the Blue Sharks, maintaining they were just lucky to win Cape Verde.

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"We didn’t play well. We could have lost that game. But luckily, we were very lucky. Nigeria is going to beat us, and that’s when we will get a wake-up call. I’m not saying this because I’m being negative, but it’s just me stating facts.

"I love Bafana Bafana, and I want to see them doing well. But this is our last game, those guys [Nigeria] are going to punish us.”

South Africa is two wins away from ending its 24-year wait of winning the AFCON after its last triumph in 1996 on home soil.

Broos unhappy with Cape Verde win

Meanwhile, South Africa coach Hugo Broos described their historic quarter-final victory against Cape Verde as their worst so far at the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations, FARPost reports.

Captain Ronwen Williams performed a heroic feat, saving four penalties in a dramatic shootout against Cape Verde on Saturday night to earn Bafana Bafana their first AFCON semi-final in 24 years.

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Broos who is aiming to win the tournament for the second time as coach, will hope South Africa improves in their next game against Nigeria if they want to emerge as champions of Africa again.

Secret to South Africa’s AFCON success

Earlier, Sports Brief reported that Mazola Molefe has named “unity” as the secret behind South Africa’s success at the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations.

Despite criticism of Hugo Broos' team selection, Molefe stated that the goal was not to combine superstar players, but to assemble individuals who function well together.