Bafana Bafana coach, Hugo Broos, believes that his team has raised the level compared to what they did in the Africa Cup of Nations even though they played against Panama in a friendly match.
The match at Moses Mabhida Stadium, Durban, on Friday night ended in a 1-1 draw.
Panama took the lead with a goal by Edgar Yoel Barcenas in the first half in the 23rd minute following a mistake made by Khuliso Mudau.
It quickly got the equalizer in the second half in the 48th minute through the foot of Oswin Appollis, who was headed by Mudau in the box.
“I believe that everyone saw that we played well. We controlled the game from start to finish. The two chances that Panama got were caused by our mistakes. They got the goal because we couldn’t get the ball back. I told the players during the break that they can kick the ball into the crowd if they are under pressure,” said Broos.
“They got another chance because of an incomplete pass that put Ime Okon in danger, we lost the ball, and they hit the post. Other than that, nothing bothered us.
“We had about nine chances. The bad thing we did in this game is that we didn’t use the chances we got. I can see that we played good football, the players were seeing each other on the field and the spaces were coming out well.
“I am happy with the way we played. The difference was big compared to what we showed in Morocco (in the Afcon). We will have to wait for the game on Tuesday, but if we can play the way we played in the first game, we will see that Bafana has returned, which we enjoyed two or three years ago.”
Bafana and Panama will face off again in the second friendly to be played at DHL Stadium, Cape Town, on Tuesday at 7.30pm.