"We realized we couldn't win the match by playing football" - Hugo Broos comments on the draw with Nigeria

The Belgian manager remains optimistic.

Details: Bafana Bafana head coach Hugo Broos shared his thoughts on yesterday's draw against Nigeria:

"If the South African national team had played against Nigeria two years ago as we did today, we would have lost. In the second half, we realized we couldn't win the match by playing football, only by fighting, and that's exactly what we tried to do. We fought just as hard as our opponents, we were as strong as they were, and I think the result is fair—neither team really deserved to win.

But I believe we made the best of the situation by securing this point. Now we only need one more win, and we have two chances to get it, so let's try to achieve that as soon as possible," Broos said.

The 73-year-old Belgian admitted that preparing for Nigeria involved a lot of tactical nuances:

"On one hand, the team wants to play football, but on the other, the team tries to win with physical strength—so for the first half hour, we managed that, but after that, yes, Nigeria tried to get back into the game with their physical style, and it worked for them.

If we had defended just a bit more aggressively, they would never have scored, first of all, and secondly, it was a handball. But anyway, the score was 1-1, and you know, from a team like Nigeria, you can expect them to play a different kind of football. That's exactly what happened, but when you see the progress South Africa has made at this level, it's massive," Broos added.

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South Africa drew 1-1 with Nigeria, thus postponing their World Cup qualification. Bafana Bafana will play their next match away against Zimbabwe in a month, and a victory would see them qualify for the World Cup.

Reminder: Draw in the South Africa vs Nigeria match. Bafana Bafana's World Cup qualification put on hold