CAPE TOWN - Belgian Hugo Broos was appointed the new Bafana Bafana coach on a five-year deal due to his "experience" and ability to "work with young players", according to Safa chief executive Tebogo Motlanthe.
Broos is no stranger on the continent having led Cameroon to Africa Cup of Nations success in Gabon in 2017 when they beat Egypt 2-1 in the final at the Stade de l'Amitié in Libreville.
The 69-year-old has also had an extensive coaching career spanning all of 31 years. During that time he has notably coached the likes of Belgian League giants Club Brugge, R.S.C Anderlecht as well as K.R.C Genk.
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"The technical committee looked at the technical aspect and experience. Does he have international experience? Has he been there? We had to look at the time,“ Motlanthe said on SABC Sport.
“We are fortunate that CAF has pushed back the (World Cup) qualifiers. We now understand that qualifiers will start in June, so we are pressed for time. We needed someone that is ready to take the team and that would of course be a person with international experience.“
"He can work with young players. He spoke about his passion to work with our young players. He has been watching our games and picked up where we are going wrong. The plan that he will be coming with will be to get back to where we belong as a football country."
The Belgian coach is expected to arrive in South Africa next week. https://t.co/Vbrca7sdyt pic.twitter.com/NzBoioOOV7
— Bafana Bafana (@BafanaBafana) May 5, 2021
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Safa were desperately working around the clock to find a replacement for former coach Molefi Ntseki, who was sacked a little over a month ago after Bafana failed to qualify for next year’s Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) in Cameroon.
Broos has been handed a mandate of guiding Bafana Bafana to the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, but there will be a continous assessment of his progress.
"The technical committee has advised that we have a continuous assessment because when we take a decision, it will be an informed decision. The prize is to qualify," Motlanthe said.
Broos will be arriving in South Africa with one assistant coach. They will be joined by a local assistant for the" transfer of knowledge" to take occur.