Four things we learned from Bafana v Cape Verde

Ronwen Williams is one of the best on the continent

Saving four penalties in a shootout is unheard of. Ronwen Williams, however, has etched his name into the hearts of South Africans after he took Bafana to last four of the competition. He blocked four the five penalties from Cape Verde. He has also kept four clean sheets in a row to prove once again that he’s amongst the best goalkeepers on the African continent.

Bafana need to create more goalscoring opportunities

Bossing ball possession was always going to be a key component of whoever won the game. As much as Bafana were happy to play without the ball, they should have been more effective on the transition. Evidence Makgopa was not given any real supply upfront. Overall, Bafana didn’t create enough clear cut chances. This should be a concern for Hugo Broos because in order to win big matches, his team needs to be more adventurous.

One area of weakness for Bafana Bafana

For South Africa to go all the way in the tournament, they will need to defend set pieces better. They rode their luck a bit against Cape Verde and they might not be so lucky against Nigeria and the imposing figure of Super Eagles striker Victor Osimhen. In the end,  they were not punished and ultimately won the penalty shootout to reach the semi-final for the first time since the 2000 AFCON in Ghana and Nigeria. 

Fatigue setting in for Bafana

One couldn’t help but feel that Bafana looked a bit jaded. Hugo Broos kept faith in the same starting XI for a fourth successive match. Bafana lacked the cutting edge in the final third and were too slow in their build-ups. Cape Verde looked fresher of the two teams, particularly in the second half. The ’96 champions lacked a sense of urgency and at times did look like they had run out of steam.