Broos vows improved display against Zim

Chalking up the rather disjointed second half of their 1-all draw against Nigeria in Uyo on Friday to fatigue, due to travel complications, confident Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos has promised an improved display against Zimbabwe.

Bafana host Zimbabwe's Warriors at Free State Stadium in the 2026 World Cup qualifier tonight (6pm). Bafana's trip to Nigeria wasn't a smooth one, taking at least 20 hours to finally reach Uyo. 

Their chartered flight was delayed for at least five hours before it took off late on Wednesday. The team was also forced to spend the night in Port Harcourt before proceeding to Uyo on Thursday, as the airport there had already been closed.

“There was a difference between the first half and the second half against Nigeria. In the first half we were, let's say, fresh, and in the second half Nigeria scored very early because we were starting to get tired after a long 20-hour trip,'' Broos said at Free State Stadium yesterday.

“That will not happen tomorrow [today] because we've had three good nights of resting now...we've been sleeping well. We couldn't sleep in Nigeria and we weren't 100% fresh but the mentality of the team was still good. Against Zimbabwe we will not be in those circumstances...we will be good and fresh."

Going into this Group C clash, Zimbabwe are still reeling from their shock 2-0 defeat to Lesotho at Orlando Stadium on Friday.

Broos has explained why he doesn't think the Warriors are a bad team for losing to less-fancied Lesotho. “Okay, Zimbabwe lost 2-0 against Lesotho but the first goal wasn't a chance but it was a mistake of the goalkeeper. The second one was a nice goal and they had a third chance and that was all...for the rest of the game Zimbabwe were the better team and they are a tough team. It's always difficult for SA to play against Zimbabwe, so it will not be different tomorrow [today],'' Broos explained.

Without detailing, Broos revealed that Percy Tau was not 100% fit for the game. “There are no injuries but maybe a little doubt on Percy but I think there will be no problem,'' Broos noted.