How does Bafana compare to Broos' 2017 AFCON Champs?

 In yesterday’s final press conference ahead of the 2023 AFCON round of 16 clash against Morocco at Stade Laurent Pokou in San Pedro tonight (8pm, 10pm SA Time), Broos was forced to make comparisons between the conquerors 2017 champions of Cameroon and the current Bafana Bafana squad.

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In that tournament, he had finished second in Group A behind Burkina Faso, before seeing off Senegal, Ghana, and Egypt in the final.

''You know, comparing is always difficult because circumstances are different. But on the other side when you look at what we did with Cameroon - it is a little bit the same, we went through the group stages. Then came that game against Senegal, we won through penalties,''

''I don't like to compare things but if we want, we can do better than this,'' said Broos.

In big games like the one against Morocco tonight, mental strength has also proven to be key and it’s one of the areas Bafana Bafana have improved in since the tournament started.

 There was that wake-up loss in the second half to the opening game against Mali. It’s in these kinds of games, Broos is looking for his players to show a strong mentality.

''Believe in ourselves, that's the big step we made in the last few months, we know what we can do - we're not afraid of the game of tomorrow [tonight]. We want to play at our best level, we know that it is possible to beat Morocco even though they are a good team,''

''So if we start the game with the same mindset we had against the other teams, then maybe we can create a surprise tomorrow [tonight],'' added Broos.

The winner of tonight’s game between Bafana Bafana and Morocco will meet Cape Verde in the fourth and last quarterfinal match in Yamoussoukro on Saturday evening (20:00).  

There has been a lot of transformation in Bafana Bafana’s current squad compared to the team that lost 2-1 in Rabat when the AFCON qualifiers started. 

This is something Broos is acknowledging when also reviewing their 2-1 win over the Atlas Lions at FNB stadium in June last year, as their head coach Walid Regragui was pointing out that they missed their stars in that game.

 Burnley’s Lyle Foster scored Bafana Bafana’s only goal in Rabat and at home, Zakhele Lepasa and Percy Tau were on target. 

''The first time we played Morocco, we were not ready - we were building. If you look at the players who played against Morocco there's big difference compared to the team that is playing tomorrow [tonight], we are not the same team any more,''

''It is possible to beat Morocco, let's see what happens tomorrow [tonight], he concluded.

With a certain section of South African football fans obsessed with a good brand of football, Broos says if he were to be made to choose between good football and progressing to the next stage of the competition, he would choose the latter.

 After all, that is what most big teams have been focused on, in this tournament, getting the results that mattered most. 

As the Moroccan media compared how a team like Mamelodi Sundowns play as compared to Bafana at the AFCON, Broos was clear that this is a different level than CAF Champions League (CAFCL) and African Football League (AFL).