Broos reveals periodization strategy for Sundowns players

The African champions joined the team in camp on Wednesday morning, after they were crowned as the two-time CAF Champions League champions this last weekend in Morocco. 

With the demands of a long season and traveling, Broos says the six players who traveled won’t feature in today’s game for periodization purposes...

"The last few days have been very emotional with Sundowns celebrating and having parties, which I'm not against because when you win the Champions League you have to celebrate. They are not really mentally ready to focus on the World Cup just yet, and that's why the Sundowns players will not be in the squad for the game against Nicaragua. They will have another day to rest, and in the worst case they might have to play ten minutes."

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Broos says the Sundown’s players deserve a rest, because the Champions League final was energy-sapping and they need to get them fresh and ready for the World Cup.

For tonight’s game, Broos is expected to test different combinations and give a chance to players who are new to the team, like Olwethu Makhanya and Bradley Cross, to familiarize themselves with the expectations ahead of the World Cup. 

Broos touches on the level he’s expecting from the players going into this World Cup...

"We are at a point where we have to make our next step because the highest level of football is the World Cup. You will be confronted with players who have more experience on that level than us so we have to make that step up.

"South Africa has always been a team that has played good football, but this is not enough. You need fighting spirit, you need to win games without playing well, and this is what we learnt especially in Ivory Coast."

Bafana Bafana are heading to this World Cup having only lined up preparation opponents from the CONCACAF region, but Broos says that’s not a train smash. Initially, the plan was to play against opponents from the Americas, Europe, and Asia, in preparation for the teams they will meet at the World Cup, but Broos raised some factors that influenced their decision and revealed they could’ve also played Serbia...

"The best thing would've been for us to play against an Asian, European and a Central American team. You also need the opportunities to play against them. There were some other possibilities like Serbia, but they only wanted to play against us on the 29th of May, but the Sundowns players had to play on the 25th. So you have to take all of these things into account."