South African head coach, Hugo Broos says the fight for third position in the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations will be more of a mental battle than anything.
The Bafana Bafana will face Democratic Republic of Congo in the third-place match at the Felix Houphouet Boigny Stadium, Abidjan on Saturday(Today).
Broos’ side suffered a agonising 4-2 penalty shootout defeat to Nigeria in the semi-final on Wednesday.
The Belgian tactician who guided South Africa to their first semi-final since 2000, said the key to clinching a third place will be in how they mentally recover from the heart-breaking loss to Nigeria.
“We played a very good game against Nigeria. It was a great performance and we showed that we are a great team again,” he told CAFonline.
“When you exit after 120 minutes, it’s always a huge disappointment. When you play so good, the disappointment is so big. The game tomorrow is special.
“It depends a bit on which team will be mentally recovered because also for DRC, it was difficult to lose like that”.