AFCON: Ertugral backs Broos, insists Cameroon lucky

Veteran coach Muhsin Ertugral has called for calm after South Africa’s Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) exit following Sunday’s 2-1 loss to Cameroon, saying there is no need for ‘hysteria’ on Hugo Broos.

The Turkey-born coach is renowned for insights beyond the superficial football knowledge. This is due to his vast experience having coached back home in the European country and across a broader spectrum of South Africa’s Premier Soccer League (PSL) teams such as Kaizer Chiefs, Orlando Pirates, Mpumalanga Black Aces and Ajax Cape Town.

Therefore, when the ex-Pirates mentor speaks, his voice carries a wealth of knowledge. In that regard, his Facebook reaction after South Africa’s loss to Cameroon in the AFCON Round-of-16 match has generated healthy debate.

Aware that fingers are slowly being pointed at Broos, with some questioning his tactics and his fielding, Ertugral has delved deeper into the team’s performance in Morocco.

Ertugral talks about Cameroon’s luck and South Africa’s lack of it

The former Mpumalanga Black Aces handler said it was unreasonable to trash the national coach’s performance based on one bad day at the office, saying he has done an excellent job since taking over Bafana Bafana.

“Bafana’s first 20 minutes was very good for me, very good and the different passing and running patterns, better connections, clear third man options was well-prepared from the coaching staff. Bafana should have scored at least one,” wrote the coach.

One such critic is South Africa legend Doctor Khumalo who, according to SuperSportBet, questioned the Belgian’s decision to deploy a three-man defence.

“I guess he tried to neutralise the Cameroon striking force. But you can’t play three defenders for the entire 90 minutes, yet Cameroon were using only one with [Bryan] Mbeumo, coming as a dummy striker. It’s only when they were pressing, so he should have come up with a second option,” the 1996 AFCON winner said.

However, Ertugral, commenting in general without necessarily responding to Khumalo’s remarks, insisted that a playing system is simply a reference point of games.

“Again, systems are reference points. Behaviours, relations, timing, and yes, sometimes luck decides knockout matches. Hugo Broos has done excellent work. Back to back AFCON qualification and now qualification for the 2026 World Cup. I think there is no need for hysteria. What is necessary is clarity, improvement and perspective,” the former Trabzonspor FC assistant manager explained.

“Yesterday [Sunday] for me, again, was a reminder of a simple truth in football: systems don’t win games. Systems are always reference points. Moments win games. Behaviour wins games.

“Quality wins games. There’s also something we don’t like to admit in football, there is always a percentage of luck involved, isn’t it?,” the former Trabzonspor FC assistant manager explained.

The 65-year-old then broke the game down into tactical bits to highlight how South Africa’s failure to seize the game’s defining moments and a lack of luck decided the outcome of the match.

“Everyone talks about mistakes. Yes, mistakes are part of the game. Without, I think every match ends 0–0!

This is why it all makes it interesting because something breaks somewhere. Cameroon’s first goal was a perfect example for me. The corner is defended. The ball is cleared, even if only partially. Then comes the second ball, a free shot, a deflection, and suddenly the ball drops in the box to the feet of Cameroon.”

He added: “Yes, we can discuss second ball organisation, of course. But this is not PlayStation football. This is the reality of the game! You can prepare for second balls. You can organise the defence. Still, sometimes, the ball falls to the opponent. I really hate this word “unlucky”, but honestly, that moment of luck went Cameroon’s way. For yesterday’s [Sunday’s] difference was not that Cameroon had a better system. The difference was how the key moments were decided.”

The veteran coach has massive playing and coaching experience in Turkey and South Africa. The ex-Ajax Cape Town boss served as an assistant coach for Turkish giants Trabzonspor between 1996 and 1987.