Hugo Broos: Why Panama friendlies are the perfect preparation for Mexico

Bafana Bafana's readiness for the upcoming Fifa World Cup, and specifically their opening clash against co-hosts Mexico, is set to be put to the test when they face Panama in back-to-back friendlies on home soil in the next few days.

Bafana will assemble for camp on Monday morning before moving to Durban where they will play the opening friendly at Moses Mabhida Stadium on March 27, before flying to Cape Town where they will host Panama at DHL Stadium on March 31.

Coach Hugo Broos has named a relatively strong squad for both matches, reinforcing the need to re-install the team’s DNA, attitude, and discipline, which were lacking at Afcon, resulting in an unfavourable last-16 finish.

Given the magnitude of the World Cup, and Bafana’s desire to make a strong comeback after a 16-year absence, many imagined that Safa would organise stronger opposition for Bafana to test themselves against prior to the tournament instead of Panama.

But Broos, speaking to the media after announcing his squad at the SABC studios in Johannesburg a few days ago, revealed why he is pleased to prepare for the global showpiece with matches against Panama.

“Yeah, for sure, otherwise, I wouldn’t have accepted it,” Broos said. "They are ranked 33rd in the world – 30 places higher than us. That means they have quality.'

“Secondly, it is a Central American style. Panama, Ecuador, Costa Rica, and Mexico all have the same style of playing. We also play against Mexico, so it will be a very good test for us.

“It will show how we will adapt against those kinds of teams, and how strong we are now, and what we will need to work on in the future in order to beat Mexico.”

Given that Mexico is set to have arainy season in June, featuring hot and humid weather, it would have been expected that Bafana would take Panama to a province of high altitude like Gauteng or Polokwane, instead of coastal KwaZulu-Natal and the Western Cape. Broos, however, explained the reason behind the logistics.

“You can (only) play that game at high altitude when you don’t have time to adapt,” Broos said.

“That we will do before the World Cup. At the latest, we will be in Pachuca on May 31. It is 2 300m high, the same altitude as in Mexico. We will need 10 days at high altitude, which we will have. But going to high altitude when we play against Panama (in the two friendlies) that will be a disaster. A real one.”

With Broos placing emphasis on proper preparations, he revealed when he hopes they can play their last friendly match before jetting out to their base in Pachuca.

“We can only play one match because the players will be released on May 25. So, hopefully, we can play on May 29 or the 30th, and then fly on the 31st,” Broos said.

The Belgian was recently in Pachuca a few weeks ago to visit their base. While he came back pleased with the set-up and facilities, he wasn’t happy with the details of his trip. That’s why he has asked Safa and relevant parties for a special request to smoothen their travelling and adaptation.

“I beg again. I really beg Safa and all those who can arrange that we go to Mexico on a chartered flight,” Broos explained. 

“I recently travelled from Joburg to Atlanta for 16 hours. I waited for three hours. Then I flew from Atlanta to Mexico City for another three hours. From Mexico City to Pachuca is almost two hours. If you include the time you have to be at the airport before departure, it means you travel for 26 hours.

“When you arrive in Mexico on May 31, you need two hours to adapt, so you lose that time. I have already asked Safa and the people who need to know that they may please arrange a charter so that we can fly directly to Mexico City. It would help us a lot.”

*Mihlali Baleka is Independent Media's senior football reporter and a panelist on the group's soccer podcast, The D-Line, which is exclusive on our YouTube channel The Clutch