South Africa head coach Hugo Broos declared his side shut down the “big mouths” after Bafana Bafana reached the World Cup knockout stage for the first time in their history, earning a 1-0 win over South Korea on Wednesday.
It was the tournament’s fourth appearance for the African nation, and they finished second in Group A, behind co-hosts Mexico, who swept their matches with three straight victories.
South Africa, who last played at a World Cup on home soil in 2010, had been widely dismissed following an opening-match defeat by Mexico, losing 2-0 and leaving their chances looking bleak.
However, the team responded with resilience, drawing with the Czech Republic before edging into second place in what proved to be a decisive contest in Monterrey. Thapelo Maseko’s strike in the second half ultimately made the difference.
Broos, visibly defiant in his assessment, said he was proud of the way his squad performed and insisted the result was a direct reply to the criticism of recent weeks.
“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 that we had to change something,” Broos said.
“We just did what we did. We just did what I wanted to do and this is the result.”
The 74-year-old, who has been in charge since 2021, described qualification for the second round as a deeply emotional milestone for South Africa.
“I said it already in the past that probably it will be one of the last games of my career and when you can end a career like I had in this way, I think everybody or every coach dreams of it.”
Broos also suggested he never lost faith in his players, even as they endured sharp public scrutiny.
“Between me as a coach and them as players is yes, maybe something unique – I’m the coach, but I’m not a coach,” he said.
“I think I’m a friend of theirs. So the relationship between the players and me, this is very good.”
Next up for South Africa is Canada, another co-host nation, with the match scheduled for Los Angeles on Sunday and a spot in the last 16 at stake.
“I just know that the players will be ready again and try to achieve the third round,” Broos added.
“It should be even more historic. But those players are chasing those things. Those players want to prove to everyone and to show that they are a good team. So we will see next Sunday if we can go further.”
