South Africa’s coach Hugo Broos has revealed his periodization strategy for Sundowns players. The African champions joined the team in camp on Wednesday morning, after they were crowned as the two-time CAF Champions League champions this last weekend in Morocco.
Broos stated that the six players who travelled won’t feature in today’s game for periodization purposes, due to the demands of a long season and traveling.
Sundowns Players Need a Break
Broos said that the last few days have been very emotional with Sundowns celebrating and having parties. He added that he is not against it because when you win the Champions League you have to celebrate. Broos feels that they are not really mentally ready to focus on the World Cup just yet, and that’s why the Sundowns players will not be in the squad for the game against Nicaragua.
They will have another day to rest, and in the worst case they might have to play ten minutes. Broos believes the Sundown’s players deserve a rest, because the Champions League final was energy-sapping and they need to get them fresh and ready for the World Cup.
Testing New Combinations
Broos is expected to test different combinations for tonight’s game. He also plans to give a chance to players who are new to the team, like Olwethu Makhanya and Bradley Cross, to familiarize themselves with the expectations ahead of the World Cup.
Raising the Level for the World Cup
Broos touched on the level he’s expecting from the players going into this World Cup. He stated that they are at a point where they have to make their next step because the highest level of football is the World Cup. Broos added that South Africa will be confronted with players who have more experience on that level than them so they have to make that step up.
Broos wants South Africa to be a team that has fighting spirit. He wants them to win games without playing well, and this is what they learnt especially in Ivory Coast.
Preparation Opponents
Bafana Bafana are heading to this World Cup having only lined up preparation opponents from the CONCACAF region, but Broos says that’s not a train smash. Initially, the plan was to play against opponents from the Americas, Europe, and Asia, in preparation for the teams they will meet at the World Cup. Broos raised some factors that influenced their decision and revealed they could’ve also played Serbia.
Broos said the best thing would’ve been for them to play against an Asian, European and a Central American team. He noted that you also need the opportunities to play against them. There were some other possibilities like Serbia, but they only wanted to play against them on the 29th of May, but the Sundowns players had to play on the 25th. Broos stated that you have to take all of these things into account.