Bafana Bafana and Congo Brazzaville shared the spoils in their AFCON qualifier clash following a 1-1 draw at Stade Alphonse Massamba-Debat in Brazzaville on Tuesday evening.
Hugo Broos‘ side could have sealed their qualification for the AFCON tournament, having come into this game three points away from booking their ticket to the CAF 2025 AFCON competition. Unfortunately, the draw away from home wasn’t enough for Bafana to seal their qualification tonight.
Below are the talking points from this match.
HUGO BROOS MAKES ONE CHANGE IN THE BAFANA BAFANA LINE-UP
Bafana Bafana head coach Broos made one change in his starting line-up that faced Congo last week. Mamelodi Sundowns’ Iqraam Rayners started in the game in place of the injured Lyle Foster.
The Burnley FC forward sustained a knee injury in the first match between the two nations at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Gqeberha last Friday. As a result, Foster was withdrawn from the national team.
GOAL-SCORERS ON THE DAY FOR BOTH NATIONS
South Africa were the first side to break the deadlock in the 33rd minute of the showdown through Es Tunis star Elias Mokwana.
In the stoppage time of the interval, the host nation levelled matters courtesy of Mons Bassouamina.
BAFANA BAFANA’S AWAY RECORD AGAINST CONGO BRAZZAVILLE
South Africa has been defeated just once when playing against Congo Brazzaville on their home turf. This is when Bafana experienced a 2-0 defeat against Congo in a 1998 World Cup qualifying match.
In the six matches they played there including today’s game, Mzansi won three games and had two draws.
BAFANA BAFANA NOT CLINICAL ENOUGH
Despite having scored first, South Africa was not clinical enough when they had clear-cut chances. However, Broos’ charges looked to be the brighter team, as the home side sometimes gave the ball away cheaply, especially in the first half.
But the home side redeemed themselves by shaking things up in the second stanza.
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