Broos excited as South Africa aim for AFCON glory

IT WOULD be stretching it a little to suggest Hugo Broos resembled a kid in a sweetshop as he anticipated the start of the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON).

- MATSHELANE MAMABOLO

Yet for a coach going into his third tournament, the old man’s excitement was palpable. And that’s a good thing as South Africa seek to win only their second title in three decades.

There was no air of ‘been there, done that’ - as would have been the case with some coaches - as the Belgian coach of Bafana Bafana addressed the media ahead of their Group B opener against Angola in Marrakech tonight (7pm kickoff). Instead, there was a glint in the septuagenarian’s eye as he reflected on his previous two experiences which yielded medals.

A winner with Cameroon back in 2017 and a bronze medalist with South Africa two years ago, Broos still exuded the excitement of a rookie at the biennial, continental showpiece. Transfer some of that excitement to his team and Bafana could well return home champions, his refusal to accept the ‘favourites’ tag notwithstanding.