Bafana through to AFCON last 16 round

Hugo Broos and his Bafana Bafana troops have qualified for the last 16 of the AFCON tournament in Ivory Coast. This follows a 0-0 draw against Tunisia on Wednesday which sees them finish second in Group E. South Africa will now face Morocco in the knockout stage on Tuesday, 30 January.

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Coach Broos praised his players for showing their quality at the highest level.

“I don’t have to tell you that there’s a very happy coach sitting behind this mic. Not only because we qualified for the next round, but because of the performance,” he said.

“You know, a coach can be satisfied when he sees his boys working and fighting on the pitch. Doing what you ask, and a coach is very happy when he sees a bunch of guys on the bench, giving as much effort as those on the field to support their teammates.

“I saw all of this today. I saw a family, I saw a team that just wanted one thing which is going one round [further].”

DELIGHT AS BAFANA BAFANA QUALIFIED FOR THE AFCON LAST 16 ROUND

Mamelodi Sundowns captain Themba Zwane was voted Man of the Match for the second time in a row.

“We wanted to qualify for the next round and we did well as a team. We managed to get a point today and overall as a team, we did well,” he said.

Meanwhile, Tunisia coach Jalel Kadri says they take responsibility for the defeat and subsequent elimination from the tournament.

“It was clear that the team tried their best. Despite the defeat, we gave it our best,” he said.

“During the first half, we tried but couldn’t break them. We saw some weaknesses in their attack and tried to win.

“We were not so productive and had tactical problems in the first game. But we have to take responsibility for this defeat”.

“We apologize to the Tunisian people. Football is like this sometimes. You need luck. In respect of the Tunisian people, we apologise for this result”.