Franck Leboeuf advises Pitso Mosimane to build on Hugo Broos' successes with the South African national team

Piso Mosimane reacted to the high praise given by the head of the Guinea national team, Paulo Duarte, who included South Africa among the continent's elite. Mosimane welcomed Duarte's decision, as he believes South Africa is among the top three teams in Africa after South Africa won the opening qualification match for AFCON 2027.

Duarte made this assessment after Guinea lost 2-1 to the Bafana team at Orlando Stadium on Saturday. He named South Africa alongside continental heavyweights such as Morocco and Senegal. In his post-match press conference, Duarte told reporters: 'For me, the top three teams on the continent are Morocco, Senegal, and South Africa.'

Mosimane, who returned to the head coach position of Bafana for the second time, expressed gratitude for the praise after his team achieved an important victory in Group D, but he quickly stressed that South Africa still has much to prove. Mosimane noted: 'If that is his assessment, it is humbling. We won the bronze medal [at AFCON 2023], so perhaps because of that, yes. But we still have a long way to go. We are a good team, we played well, but we are still building up.'

Bafana started its qualification campaign confidently: defender Imre Okon opened the scoring in the first half, and then Guinea equalized thanks to Seydoube Sisse. Substitute Samukele Kabini restored South Africa's lead in the 77th minute, securing Mosimane's victory in his first competitive match after returning to the national team.

This result could be decisive in Group D, which has a unique qualification dynamic, as co-host Kenya has already guaranteed its place in the final. In the next qualifying match, Bafana will face Eritrea in Egypt on September 30, while Guinea is scheduled to play against Kenya. For Mosimane, the priority is now building on success rather than focusing on praise, as despite three important points from one of the group's main rivals, the head coach understands that there is still a long road ahead before Bafana can consistently justify Duarte's high assessment.

Despite Bafana's team missing several scoring opportunities in the match against Guinea, head coach Pitsso Mosimane refused to criticize his players, instead highly praising their commitment to pressing and attacking intentions.

Mosimane acknowledged Bafana's long-standing problem with finishing attacks after South Africa missed several chances in the 2-1 victory over Guinea in the first qualifying match for the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations. The team dominated significant portions of the game at the Orlando Amstel Arena stadium on Saturday and created enough opportunities to secure the win even before they ultimately took all three points.

Ime Okon opened the scoring in the first half, but Guinea equalized through Seydouba Sisse. Substitute Samukelo Kabini restored Bafana's lead in the 77th minute. Despite the missed chances, Mosimane was reluctant to criticize his footballers, emphasizing their readiness to create attacks.

He noted: 'We know the South African challenge: we don't score easily, maybe two out of six.' He continued, highlighting the team's positive aspects: 'But you can't complain about the guys. They have the right attitude, they want to play, they fight and press, and we created chances. Sometimes we complain about the lack of goals, but we shouldn't complain when we create chances, because sometimes you don't score just because you don't create them.'

These remarks point to an ongoing issue that Mosimane intends to address during the Africa Cup of Nations qualification campaign. South Africa could have made the result undeniable much earlier, especially after controlling the first half and creating numerous chances. Instead, Guinea remained in the game after Sisse's equalizer, forcing Bafana to rely on Kabini's late goal for the victory.

Nevertheless, for Mosimane, the ability to consistently create chances serves as a solid foundation for further development. Bafana started the campaign with three points in the difficult Group D, where Kenya's automatic qualification as one of the host countries for the 2027 tournament leaves South Africa, Guinea, and Eritrea fighting for the remaining group spot.

Now Mosimane will focus on Eritrea, as Bafana will face them in Egypt on September 30th. Although this result provided an ideal start to his second term as coach, improving South Africa's efficiency in front of goal could prove as important as creating these chances in upcoming matches.