BAFANA Bafana attacker Percy Tau says all is not lost despite their failure to book their place at next year’s Africa Cup of Nations tournament in Cameroon with a game to spare.
Tau displayed a Man of the Match performance to help Bafana bounce back from a goal down to hold Group E leaders Nigeria to a 1-1 draw in their qualifier at FNB Stadium on Saturday.
Despite being showered with praise for his sterling role, Tau refuses to take the credit. But the Super Eagles players and fans will always remember him because of these two qualifying matches. Bafana took four points off Nigeria and Tau played a key role in both games.
The 2-0 victory in Uyo and the draw means Bafana are still unbeaten in their qualifying campaign.
Nigeria are already through to the 2019 Afcon tournament in Cameroon, having collected 10 points from five matches. Bafana need just a point to secure their passage to the tournament. They are second with nine points.
Libya are third in the group with seven points, while Seychelles are bottom of the table with one point from five games.
The Super Eagles started their game against Bafana like a house on fire, taking the lead following an own goal by Buhle Mkhwanazi. But Tau dribbled his way into a jam-packed Nigeria defence to cleverly set up teammate Lebo Mothiba for the equaliser in the 27th minute.
Tau, who is on loan to Royale Union St Gilloise in Belgium from English Premiership outfit Brighton & Hove Albion, credits his teammates for a great job.
Tau said: “We wanted to win but we still have another match to fight for. It was easy for Lebo to score – it is important for us to work as a team. When I looked up Lebo was in a better position to score than I was. The team comes first, not me.
“We must work and play as a unit. We should have won, we showed everyone that we can compete in big matches. ”
Bafana coach Stuart Baxter and his Super Eagles counterpart Gernot Rohr showered the former Mamelodi Sundowns player with praise. Said Baxter: “Tau was the best player on the field by a country mile.”
Rohr agreed: “Tau was amazing. He gave us all sorts of trouble at the back. What a talented player.”
