Bafana Bafana head coach Hugo Broos feels the drop in performance levels due to fatigue showcases the gulf between local players and the highest level.
After an impressive showing in the 2-1 win over Mozambique, South Africa labored to a 1-1 draw with Angola, with several players not living up to expectations.
While Bafana played well in patches, Broos admitted he understood that fatigue, physically and mentally after a heavily congested schedule this past two months, played a role.
“It’s the same discussion, and people get angry when I say that the level of the PSL has to go up,” Broos said.
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“Those players are not used to playing on that level [of congested fixtures] of that quality, two games in three days. [The high level] plays quicker. The tempo of the [Angola] game is much higher than a PSL game.
“The intensity, you saw how they defend, you saw – this is football. It has to be like that and when you’re not used to it, you’ll play a very good game against Mozambique. And then there’s fatigue because you played higher than you can do.
“Then yes you have a problem three days later, but you have to manage it – you can’t do anything else, it is what it is. We will work on it but I can’t do that, I only have the players like five times a year, for one week, I can’t change that.
“Therefore again, increase the level, also physically, increase the level of the PSL, then they will be used to this and as you said, the players in Europe, they play every three days and they never [seem] tired, I know – because they are used to it.”
South Africa’s next assignment is Liberia in back-to-back Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers in March 2023.
