Bafana will ‘fight like lions’ against ‘complete team’ Mexico, says Broos

Bafana Bafana are not only going to deal with a hostile crowd of almost 70,000 people inside Estadio Azteca in the opening match of the 2026 Fifa World Cup against Mexico on Thursday (9pm SA time).

Coach Hugo Broos said they will have to be at their best against a “complete team” that has ambitions to go as far as possible in the tournament Mexico are co-hosting with the US and Canada.

Mexico coach Javier Aguirre has put together a squad that boasts a blend of seasoned and established veterans and a group of rising and exciting domestic talents.

Key players for ‘El Tri’ include Guillermo Ochoa, Mateo Chávez, Edson Álvarez, Santiago Gimenez, César Huerta, Johan Vásquez, Gilberto Mora and Raúl Jiménez.

“They are a complete team with movement and solidarity,” said Broos on what Bafana are up against at the venue that is famous for Diego Maradona’s “Hand of God” goal against England in the 1986 World Cup semifinal.

“When you watch them play, you can see they really want to become world champions with their commitment in the game. They are a very good team, and we will have to be at our best level to get a good result.

“I saw their game against Serbia [Mexico beat Serbia 5-1 in a warm-up last week] and it was fantastic how they played, especially in the first half. They impressed with their movement, aggression, solidarity and defence.

“So they are a complete team and it is going to be difficult for us.”

Though he is aware of Mexico’s strengths, Broos said South Africa is in no way going to lie down and roll over and will fight with everything they have.

“Football game is a football game, and we can’t think that we don’t have a chance against them. We have to be prepared properly and play at our best level.”

The coach urged his players to be highly concentrated on the small details.

“We know which opponent we are playing on Thursday, and we are focused on them. Our focus will be on how we are going to play when they have the ball and what we are going to do when we have the ball.

“These are the details we will have to work on. We will analyse their qualities and also look at where we can be dangerous and hurt them. This is the work that we are doing.”

We are playing for all those people who believe in us. I just heard that there is no Bafana shirt available in [the shops in] South Africa. It means a lot to us and it is for those people that we will fight like lions

—  Hugo Broos

Playing in an environment that is going to be hostile, Broos has asked his players to stick to the game plan and block out the noise.

“For us it will be a special and fantastic experience because my players have never played in this situation. It is going to be important for us to stick to the game plan and not listen to what is happening in the stands.

“We all know there will be [almost entirely] Mexicans in the stadium and a few South Africans, and because of that you can’t count on the support. Having said that, we know that we have the support of the whole nation back home.

“We felt it when we started the preparations in South Africa — that all South Africans are supporting us. This is something we have to remember on Thursday: that we are playing for the nation.

“We are playing for all those people who believe in us. I just heard that there is no Bafana shirt available in [the shops in] South Africa. It means a lot to us and it is for those people that we will fight like lions.”

TimesLIVE