Chelsea loanee Abdul Baba Rahman says Percy Tau was too mobile when Bafana Bafana hosted Ghana in last Thursday’s Africa Cup of Nations qualifier Group C match and the signs were already there that South Africa would struggle in Sudan.
Bafana were held 1-1 by Ghana in their penultimate qualifying game at FNB Stadium, before losing 2-0 away in Sudan on Sunday.
That saw Molefi Ntseki and his men missing out on a ticket for the Afcon finals to be staged in Cameroon in January 2022.
While acknowledging Tau as a good player, Baba Rahman says he managed to contain the Brighton and Hove Albion player well.
“I think looking at him [Tau] he is a very good player and very quick. But in the game he was kind of just moving around where we were. He was not stuck on one position,” Baba Rahman told FootballMadeInGhana .
“I won some duels against him. But overall, he is a good player and it was a good test for me to play against him.”
Baba Rahman suggested that Bafana Bafana lacked experience in Omdurman as they conceded two first-half goals.
Ghana also fell in Sudan last November as Al Hilal striker Mohamed Abdelrahman’s stoppage-time strike sank the Black Stars.
Abdelrahman was back again to haunt South Africa on Sunday, grabbing Sudan’s second goal and Baba Rahman says he was not surprised by the result.
“After we drew against South Africa in Johannesburg, I had it in mind that it would be difficult for them to win in Sudan,” the Chelsea loanee continued.
“I have been there and I saw how they played. If you go to Sudan or when we went there, their football was not attractive.
"They just want to win the Sudanese so if you are not tough with a bit of experience then you will get beaten easily. I knew it would be tough for South Africa to get a draw over there.”
After the Afcon agony, South Africa will now look to pick themselves up in the upcoming 2022 Fifa World Cup qualifiers where they will meet Ghana again as well as Zimbabwe and Ethiopia.
.jpg?auto=webp&format=pjpg&width=640&quality=60)