Bafana Bafana suffered a narrow 2–1 defeat to Panama in their second international friendly at the DHL Stadium in Cape Town, on Tuesday evening.
Following a 1–1 draw in the first encounter, head coach Hugo Broos made four changes to his starting lineup, bringing in Mbekezeli Mbokazi, Jayden Adams, Bongokuhle Hlongwane, and Relebohile Mofokeng. Despite a slow start, Bafana gradually found their rhythm, with Tshepang Moremi creating an early opportunity, although his effort was deflected wide.
Panama posed a threat on the counter, with Ismael Díaz finding space at the back post but failing to beat goalkeeper Ronwen Williams. Bafana came close to taking the lead just before halftime, but Hlongwane fired wide after a well-constructed move involving Moremi.
The second half brought further changes for the hosts, including a debut for goalkeeper Renaldo Leaner and the introduction of Evidence Makgopa. However, it was Panama who broke the deadlock when José Córdoba capitalised on a handling error from Leaner to score from a tight angle.
Bafana responded strongly in the 64th minute, with Mbokazi producing a superb long-range strike from a pass by Themba Zwane to level the score.
With momentum seemingly shifting in favour of the home side, Bafana pushed for a winner but were undone in the closing stages. Panama regained the lead in the final ten minutes when Jiovany Ramos rose unmarked at the far post to head home a cross from José Rodríguez.
Despite a late surge, Bafana were unable to find an equaliser against a resolute Panama defence, marking Hugo Broos’ first home defeat since taking charge.
Speaking after the match, Broos highlighted concerns over his side’s finishing:
“This is something we have to work on, and it has to do with the confidence of the players. When you get the chances we had today and in the previous game, it is too much to miss them all. In the two matches, we created around ten chances but only scored twice. That is not enough. It is something we can work on, but also difficult because the players leave tomorrow, and I will only see them again at the end of May.”