Safa denies reports Hugo Broos will dump Bafana for Tunisia

The South African Football Association (Safa) is adamant Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos is going nowhere despite a report in the Tunisian media on Monday that the Belgian is set to dump South Africa and join that country’s national team.

A report on the website of Tunisia’s Mosaïque FM said Broos is exploring how to get out of his contract with Safa and join Tunisia “directly”.

The coach, who steered Bafana to their best Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) finish in 24 years with the bronze medal last month, is in Algiers where the South Africans meet Algeria in their Fifa Series friendly match at Stade Nelson Mandela on Tuesday night (11pm).

Broos was asked in a digital press conference with South African journalists on Tuesday — before Bafana’s first match in Algeria, Thursday’s 1-1 draw against Andorra in Annaba — about constant links to jobs with other teams, specifically the technical director role at Club Brugge.

“There is nothing,” the 71-year-old said then. “I said already after Afcon that if you do well with a team automatically there is interest in you as a coach.

“I heard rumours Algeria was interested, Tunisia was interested and some other teams, also Brugge now. But again there are no negotiations.”

Safa head of communication Mninawa Ntloko, who is also in Algeria with Bafana, said on Monday that status is unchanged.

“Nothing has changed from what the coach told journalists in the Zoom press conference a few days ago,” Ntloko told TimesLIVE.

He said he could not comment further on the matter.

The website of Mosaïque FM reported on Monday it had “learnt that Hugo Broos is close to taking over as coach of the [Tunisia] national team, [with the Tunisian federation] waiting for the Belgian to find a [way] to sever his association with Safa and allow him to leave his position as coach of Bafana Bafana”.

“In the event that the procedures for terminating his contract with Safa are completed, Broos will directly coach the Tunisian national team, knowing he will be accompanied in his awaited mission by a number of his assistants who worked with him during his previous experiences in recent years.”

Mosaïque FM is the first private radio station in Tunisia

TimesLIVE is informed the reports from Tunisia might be part of a tactical ploy where the media in that country publishes stories at the behest of the federation to try to force certain situations in luring coaches to their national team.

Tunisia bombed out in the group stage of the Nations Cup in Ivory Coast prompting coach Jalel Kadri to resign. 

Montasser Louhichi has been acting as caretaker coach of the Carthage Eagles.