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Baxter praises South Africa despite defeat to Ivory Coast
Stuart Baxter, coach of South Africa
Tuesday Jun 25, 2019. 13:00
South Africa head coach Stuart Baxter praised his charges following their defeat to Ivory Coast on Monday.Bafana Bafana began their 2019 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) Group D campaign with a 1-0 defeat to Ivory Coast in Egypt.
The encounter was played in scorching temperatures at the Al Salam Stadium in the city of Cairo.
The temperatures peaked around 37 Celsius (98.6 Fahrenheit).
"I think we dealt with them quite well in first half and it was an even game," Baxter said.
"In the second half the heat affected both teams and the tempo dropped, but I think we were comfortable in the game.
"We can't complain about losing the game but I thought the players put in a great performance and it's a great learning curve for us," he added.
Ivorian striker Jonathan Kodjia scored the only goal of the match with a low shot after the Bafana defence was exposed.
South Africa and Ivory Coast will now take on Namibia and Morocco respectively on Friday.
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