Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos says it’s difficult to lose a player like Themba Zwane after he suffered an injury in their 1-1 draw against Congo Brazzaville.

Broos was forced into making a substitution five minutes before the half-time break when Zwane picked up an injury and was subsequently replaced by Patrick Maswanganyi.

South Africa were unable to secure back-to-back victories over Congo and were forced to settle for a 1-1 draw in their 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier at Stade Alphonse Massamba-Debat de Brazzaville on Tuesday evening.

The win sees Bafana remain in second place on the Group K standings with eight points from four matches, while Congo are placed third in the group with four points from four matches.

“Themba Zwane is a very important player for us. It was not a good thing for us that Themba had to go out with an injury,” Broos said.

“It is a big injury, it is an Achilles tendon injury. I’m afraid he will be out for months. So, again, when you lose such an important player, it’s difficult, certainly in a game where you dominated.

“It’s always difficult to lose such a player because Themba is someone who can keep the ball, who can give the last pass. So, he was not there and maybe that was also a reason why we didn’t play so well.”

Bafana will take on Uganda in their next AFCON qualifier when the two side’s meet in November before playing host to South Sudan in their final Group K match.