Spain coach Vicente del Bosque says South Africa deserved their victory on Tuesday.
It was only the seventh time in 83 matches Spain have tasted defeat under Del Bosque.
Asked if it was one of the worst Spain displays in recent times, Del Bosque told Cuatro: "It could be.
"I think we can even say that we deserved the defeat. We started the game very well but little by little they started opening us up and we gave them time to play on the counter.
"We came out with good intentions, I can't complain about the attitude of my players. South Africa got better."
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