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South Africa coach Hugo Broos says his side have answered their critics in the best possible way after securing a historic place in the FIFA World Cup knockout stage for the first time.
Bafana Bafana booked their place in the next round with a hard-fought 1-0 victory over South Korea in Monterrey on Wednesday, finishing second in Group A behind co-hosts Mexico.
The result capped a remarkable turnaround for the South Africans, who were heavily criticised after opening their campaign with a 2-0 defeat to Mexico. Broos and his players responded with a draw against the Czech Republic before Thapelo Maseko’s decisive second-half goal against South Korea sealed qualification.
The achievement marks South Africa’s best-ever performance at a World Cup and their first appearance in the knockout rounds in four tournament appearances.
Speaking after the victory, Broos took aim at those who questioned his tactics and selection decisions following the opening defeat.
“I’m very proud of the performance of my team and I think we gave an answer to all those big mouths of the last weeks that thought we had to change something,” the Belgian coach said.
“We stayed with what we believed in, we trusted our approach and today we got the reward.”
The 74-year-old, who has managed South Africa since 2021, described the qualification as one of the proudest moments of his coaching career.
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“This may be one of the last major tournaments of my career and to achieve something like this is special. Every coach dreams of ending his career with moments like these,” he said.
Broos also credited the close bond between himself and the players for helping the team overcome adversity and external pressure.
“The relationship between me and the players is very good. There is trust and respect. That connection has helped us throughout this journey,” he added.
South Africa will now face co-hosts Canada in Los Angeles on Sunday, with a place in the quarter-finals at stake.
Despite already making history, Broos believes his players are capable of going even further.
“These players want to keep proving people wrong. They want to show they are a good team and we will try to make the next round even more historic,” he said.
After years of disappointment on the global stage, South Africa now head into the knockout phase with confidence, momentum and a chance to extend their dream World Cup run.
