KICKOFF ALERT: HUGO BROOS CLAIMS SOUTH AFRICA SUCCESS BETTER THAN CAMEROON TITLE WIN
Hugo Broos believes his 5-year project with Bafana Bafana is more meaningful than his AFCON title with Cameroon. Read his reasons.
Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos feels he's achieved more with South Africa than when he won the Africa Cup of Nations with Cameroon. He says he had the time to build a squad over five years here.
Broos, from Belgium, won the Cup of Nations with Cameroon in 2017 but was soon out of a job.
Now, with two Cup of Nations qualifications (including a bronze medal last time) and a trip to the 2026 World Cup coming up, Broos thinks his time with Bafana has been more worthwhile.
“To be honest, I think what we've done with South Africa is better than what I did with Cameroon,” Broos said.
“We built a team here, and they got better every day. When you go to AFCON, you always have goals, but you don't really expect to get to the final.
“For most of the guys, it was their first AFCON (in 2024), so you don't expect that. But we improved a lot. Cameroon, on the other hand, was a team that was used to playing at AFCON.
“They were seen as favourites to win, so it was different, and the pressure was way higher. Looking at what we have done here with South Africa—finishing third at the last AFCON, qualifying for AFCON twice in a row, and qualifying for the World Cup—I didn't do that with Cameroon.”
Broos said that even though he won a trophy with Cameroon, he looks at the bigger picture.
“We won AFCON with Cameroon, but four months later, we were out of World Cup qualification, and Nigeria went through. So, I’m happier with the work I’ve done here in South Africa than with what I did with Cameroon,” Broos said.
“With Cameroon, winning at AFCON is expected. But I don’t think anyone here, or even myself, thought two years ago that we (Bafana Bafana) would reach the semi-finals.
“So yes, it was a great run, and it’s not over. We’ll see what happens in a few weeks, and then I’ll try to finish my career strong (at the World Cup).”
South Africa starts its 2025 AFCON campaign with a Group B game against Angola in Marrakech on Monday.
CRISTIANO RONALDO PROTESTS AL-HILAL'S BENZEMA DEAL BY SKIPPING AL-NASSR LEAGUE MATCH
Cristiano Ronaldo is fuming. Discover why the Al-Nassr star skipped his last match and is now threatening to leave Saudi Arabia.
Cristiano Ronaldo has been the main attraction in the Saudi Pro League ever since he landed in the Middle East three years ago. Now, for the first time, it looks like he’s actually thinking about leaving. He’s frustrated. He feels the playing field isn’t level, and it’s starting to get to him.
Here’s the deal: Four clubs in the league—Al-Ittihad, Al-Nassr, Al-Hilal, and Al-Ahli—get their backing straight from the state. But Ronaldo sat out Al-Nassr’s match against Al-Riyadh on Monday night. Why? He was protesting. He found out Al-Hilal was about to sign Karim Benzema from Al-Ittihad, and that was the last straw. From Ronaldo’s perspective, Al-Hilal keeps getting more freedom to splash cash than everyone else. They’re the current champions, and Ronaldo still hasn’t managed to win his first Saudi title.
Saudi officials tried to calm him down. According to Diario AS, they reached out and argued that most of Al-Hilal’s extra spending comes from Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal, not the Public Investment Fund (PIF). Al-Hilal just brought in Kader Meite for €30 million, Saimon Bouabre for €23 million, and now Benzema. Al-Nassr, on the other hand, only managed two free transfers this winter. Sure, they spent a lot more in the summer, but that didn’t seem to matter to Ronaldo.
Reports from Portugal, cited by AS, say Ronaldo’s not ruling anything out—not even leaving Saudi Arabia this summer. That’s despite just signing an extension with Al-Nassr until 2027.
And honestly, he has a point. Since he arrived, Al-Hilal have spent €647 million, while Al-Nassr have shelled out €410 million and Al-Ittihad €365 million. These numbers probably don’t include salaries—and let’s face it, nobody’s making more than Ronaldo. He’s supposed to return on Friday when Al-Nassr face Al-Ittihad, but right now, no one really knows if he’ll play or if he’s planning his next move.
N’GOLO KANTE SKIPS TRAINING AS AL-ITTIHAD BLOCK HIS MOVE TO FENERBAHCE OFFICIALLY
N’Golo Kante has gone on strike at Al-Ittihad after a paperwork error blocked his move to Fenerbahce. Can he still sign by Friday?
N’Golo Kanté didn’t show up for Al-Ittihad training on Tuesday, and it’s not hard to see why. He was all set to head to Fenerbahçe, but the deal fell apart at the last minute—apparently because Al-Ittihad messed up some paperwork. Kante was supposed to fly to Istanbul and sign, but thanks to this administrative slip, he’s stuck in limbo. There’s still a shot at reviving the transfer sinceKanté Turkey’s transfer window stays open until Friday, February 6.
Kante was one of the first big European names to jump to the Saudi Pro League, joining Al-Ittihad in 2023 after seven years with Chelsea. He’s been a key player in Jeddah, helping Al-Ittihad win the 2024-25 league title and the King’s Cup.
Then, in the middle of the January window, word got out that Fenerbahce wanted him. The Turkish club were eager to add a World Cup winner to their squad. The plan was to swap Kante for Youssef En-Nesyri, who’d head to Saudi Arabia. Everything seemed set until deadline day, when news broke that an error by Al-Ittihad in the Transfer Matching System stopped the transfer cold.
Fenerbahce didn’t hold back. They blamed Al-Ittihad directly, saying they’d done everything right: agreements with the players, medicals, paperwork, all wrapped up on time. But Al-Ittihad entered something wrong in the system, and that was that. Fenerbahçe even asked for an extension and reached out to FIFA, but nothing moved. In the end, the deal died, and Fenerbahçe put out a statement saying they understood the frustration and would keep working to strengthen the squad.
Meanwhile, Kante’s making his feelings clear. According to Ben Jacobs, he skipped training on Tuesday, still hoping the move to Fenerbahce can happen. Santi Aouna says talks between the clubs aren’t dead yet. L’Equipe is reporting that Kanté doesn’t want to play for Al-Ittihad while he waits for FIFA’s decision. With the Turkish window open until Friday, there’s still a glimmer of hope for Kante, though En-Nesyri’s move is off the table for now.