RABAT: South Africa coach Hugo Broos has played down the threat posed by Egypt’s Premier League stars Mohamed Salah and Omar Marmoush ahead of their Africa Cup of Nations Group B clash on Friday, insisting his side will not adopt a special plan to stop individual players.
Egypt opened their campaign with a 2-1 win over Zimbabwe in Morocco, with Manchester City forward Omar Marmoush scoring the equaliser before Liverpool talisman Salah struck late to seal the victory. South Africa also began with a 2-1 success, edging Angola thanks to a stunning long-range effort from Lyle Foster.
Broos, who guided Cameroon to the AFCON title in 2017 at Egypt’s expense, said his focus remains firmly on collective strength rather than star names. “We are focused on no one. The most important thing is the team,” the Belgian told a press conference on Thursday. “We all know how good Salah is, how good Marmoush is, and how good Trezeguet and the others are. Egypt are a very good team, so why focus on one player?”
South Africa will draw confidence from recent history, having beaten Egypt 1-0 as hosts in the Round of 16 at the 2019 AFCON. Broos stressed that repeating that success will depend on his players expressing themselves. “We have to put Egypt in difficult situations, and you can only do that when you use your quality and the players you normally use,” he added.
