South Africa coach Hugo Broos has revealed his delight at how his players played to manage a 0-0 draw against Tunisia and qualify for the knockout stage of the Africa Cup of Nations in Ivory Coast.
The outcome of the Group E clash in Korhogo’s Amadou Gon Coulibaly Stadium meant the 1996 champions reached the Round of 16 for the first time since the 2019 edition held in Egypt while Tunisia crashed out as they finished bottom of the group following a simultaneous 0-0 draw in San Pedro between Mali and Namibia which saw Mali finish as the group leaders, while Namibia advanced as third best finisher.
“A coach is satisfied when a team does what he wants and even more happy when seeing the bench supporting their teammates on the field. As a family and a team, this is what we want,” said Broos after the game, adding: “We did a good analysis of Tunisia. We played compact. We took into account that we had one day less rest than our opponent.”
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Broos further revealed why South Africa deserved to qualify by saying: “We were good in the block, and they didn’t threaten us that much and I think after such a performance, South Africa deserves to be in the next round. Our first goal was to pass the group stage and we did it in three different ways. The game against Mali, Namibia, and Tunisia was different but it got us the result.”
South Africa will next face Morocco, who topped their group without conceding, in the Round of 16.