Louis Saha: African teams must believe to win the World Cup, South Africa included
Louis Saha believes African teams, including Bafana Bafana, can compete and even win the World Cup by adopting a winning mindset and leveraging their experience in challenging conditions. Picture: Lindsey Parnaby/AFP
Image: Lindsey Parnaby/AFP
Bafana Bafana’s exit in the first knockout round of the Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) was less than ideal ahead of the Fifa World Cup later this year, but belief that they can compete with the best in the globe will serve them well.
This is the view held by former Manchester United and France striker Louis Saha.
African teams have always been viewed as sides that can’t compete for the title at the World Cup, and Saha believes this needs to change.
The first step to making history is a mindset change, Saha explained.
African Teams’ Mindset Shift: Believing in World Cup Success
“The kind of mentality that African teams need to have now is believing that you can do something special,” Saha told CoinPoker.
“You need to really believe that you can at least be in the quarter-final stages and have faith in yourself. South Africa is included in that.”
With the tournament set to begin in Mexico and the USA set to run from June 11 to July 19, warm conditions are expected due to peak summer in the northern hemisphere.
“African teams can do amazing things during the World Cup. They almost have an advantage when it comes to it being very hot. The conditions in Africa can be so hard to play in, but those guys manage to do it.
“They have to come about with a different kind of mentality. I heard it from Yaya Toure, I heard it from Didier Drogba, I heard it from Samuel Eto’o, all those guys. “They should be confident. They should not have this complex about European teams, about Western teams. It should not be the case.”
Saha Believes African Teams Can Win the World Cup
Saha went a step further to say an African team could actually emerge victorious at the quadrennial showpiece.
“An African team can win the World Cup. They have the capacity. Just look at Morocco and what they are able to do on the field. I don't see why they can't win a World Cup.
“However, teams like Argentina, Brazil, France, and Germany always find a way in those crucial moments, but I think African teams are ready to compete.”