Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos has made a fresh admission about Percy Tau after spending the last four days with him in camp.
Tau is part of Broos’ Bafana squad that takes on Liberia in a must-win Group K qualifier at Orlando Stadium on Friday, 24 March 2023. Kick-off is at 18h00.
Bafana must win the tie and get a positive result in Monrovia on Tuesday, 28 March 2023, to secure qualification for the next edition of the AFCON.
With three teams in the group, group leaders Morocco are already through after Zimbabwe dropped due to a FIFA ban.
WHY HUGO BROOS BROUGHT BACK TAU?
For the upcoming tie, Broos brought Tau back to the squad after his recent surge in form.
This season, the former Brighton forward has played 18 games and scored five goals with two assists.
Broos watched Tau score for Al Ahly against Sundowns earlier in March when they lost 5-2 at the Loftus Versfeld Stadium in Pretoria.
In November 2022, Broos placed a demand on the former Sundowns star, saying he needed to be playing for his club to be considered for Bafana.
In fact, Broos omitted Tau when he picked the squad that played two international friendly matches at the Mbombela Stadium
He has since made an interesting admission about his talisman.
“Percy, little by little, is at his best level. For me, against Sundowns, he was the best player for his team [Al Ahly],” Broos responded to FARPost when asked about Tau.
Tau would be relieved to hear that, having struggled with injuries since making his move to Ahly. Many also doubted that he would stay on at the Cairo giants when Pitso Mosimane left.
“He is fresh again; I see it in training. Before last year it was like he had 50 kgs on both legs. Now you see he is fresh, he makes action.
“This is the Percy Tau I like, that I know from Belgium. This is maybe the first time that I have seen him like this.
“Percy had injuries, and he recovered and plays all the games. He is feeling good, and it’s normal because he’s playing [for Al Ahly].
“He is decisive also against Sundowns and against Coton Sport, he scored,” added the Belgian mentor.
Broos hopes Tau gives him goals when he guides Bafana against the Lone Stars.
Broos made it clear he wants Bafana to go to Monrovia carrying a healthy lead.