The Belgian coach speaks about how he was in touch with the former Mamelodi Sundowns star as the move to Al Ahly was being engineered
Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos has revealed that Percy Tau opened up to him that Brighton and Hove Albion coach Graham Potter had little trust in the player.
This conversation came about as Tau was pushing for a move to Al Ahly which eventually happened, to end a tumultuous time in the Premier League.
Broos was one of the prominent football figures who publicly threw his weight behind Tau going to Egypt as the move divided opinion.
“Yes, I spoke with him, I think two weeks ago and I asked ‘what’s the situation there?’” Broos told iDiski Times.
“He said ‘I will try to leave this club Brighton because I will not play. The coach doesn’t have confidence in me and I will let you know when there is something.’ Already now, I’m seeing that he is in Egypt… from Brighton to Egypt. I’m happy that Percy is in Egypt because he will have a chance to play.”
Tau managed just six appearances across competitions at Brighton who he joined in January after loan stints at three Belgian clubs.
The 27-year-old was, interestingly, one of those picked by Broos ahead of the ongoing 2022 Fifa World Cup qualifiers, on the background of struggling for game time at their clubs.
But the Belgian defended his selection, saying match fitness was not much of an issue after most players were busy with pre-season.
“Now it’s not really a problem, also for other players, because of them doing pre-season and having time for preparation. So physically, I think the players are for the moment good,” added Broos.
“But if it goes on like this, with players not playing, then in a few months it will be a problem.
“A few teams have an obsessive number of players in the squad. Everyone cannot play, so let’s hope that will change a little bit and the next selection in October will be a bit easier than this one.”
As Bafana drew 0-0 against Zimbabwe in their World Cup qualifier opening match in Harare last Friday, Tau was a peripheral figure as he struggled to impress.
Source: Goal
