Bafana Bafana head coach Molefi Ntseki has insisted that his team were not outplayed as they fell to a 2-0 defeat against Ghana in opening match of the 2021 African Cup of Nations qualifiers.
The Black Stars were by far the better side and ran out comfortable winners as goals from Thomas Partey and Mohammed Kudus settled the contest at the West Coast Stadium.
It was Ntseki’s first competitive match as head coach of Bafana after starting his tenure with a 2-1win against Mali in a friendly last month.
Ntseki told reporters after the game against Ghana: “I am still confident in my players even though we lost 2-0 and I feel the game was more balanced.
“They (Ghana) had more power and strength in getting the goals.
“It was not like we were outplayed in the situation where we conceded.
“It happens in the game of football – when you are not balanced the opponent will take advantage.”
Ntseki also mentioned that although the hosts had more possession, the game was decided on fine margins.
The Bafana continued: “When you are playing a game like this, everything is flowing very fast and you look for opportunities where you can hurt your opponent.
“The two teams were very compact. If you look at Ghana, they didn’t even have too many shots on goal, except from the goal from Thomas – and the second goal came from a transition, winning the ball when we were open at the back. They had possession but never hurt us.”
Bafana now face a crucial qualifier against Sudan at the Orlando Stadium on Sunday.