South Africa coach tells critics to ‘shut up’ before second World Cup match

‘I never listen to the trash of the social media,’ Hugo Broos says before Bafana Bafana’s match against Czechia.

South African coach Hugo Broos told critics of his tactics from last week’s World Cup opener to “shut up,” and said he will continue to follow his own methods while preparing for his team’s Group A match against the Czech Republic.

A backlash erupted in South Africa after Broos adopted an unusually defensive strategy in the tournament’s opening match against Mexico on Thursday, a 2-0 defeat in which his side failed to generate any meaningful scoring opportunities.

Bafana Bafana, South Africa’s national side, also ended the match with nine men after two players were sent off in the second half, leaving a largely unimpressive performance.

“I have been coaching for 40 years and understand that criticism is part of the role. At present, I am being criticized, but I want people to understand that I will continue to do things my way,” Broos stated at a Wednesday news conference.

“I never pay attention to the nonsense on social media or to individuals who consider themselves important enough to criticize the team. Reflecting on their past contributions, I believe they should simply keep quiet,” he told former player pundits.

“I know what went wrong in the Mexico match. The players are aware, and that is the most important factor; the rest of us will proceed according to my methods,” Broos reiterated.

The veteran Belgian coach emphasized that South Africa must win its Thursday match in Atlanta to retain any hope of advancing, noting that the Czech Republic also fell in its opening Group A game against South Korea.

“Our situation is clear: if we fail to win tomorrow, our final match against South Korea will be meaningless,” he said.

“This is something we must avoid. We are aware of the errors from the opening game, and while some claim the coach is overly lenient with his players, I prefer not to criticize them publicly. Occasionally, a coach must employ a degree of deception,” he added.

Broos said after the Mexico match that he felt his team could be confident following the performance, which also drew derision from some South African supporters.

“We know what went wrong in the Mexico game and will aim to correct it tomorrow, but we can only do so if we control the ball,” he added, hinting at a possible tactical shift for Thursday’s match.

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