Clive Barker has assembled his strongest sqaud to date, and he will need all the talent he can get in the vital World Cup match against Zaire
SOCCER:Andrew Muchineripi
NATIONAL coach Clive Barker this week described Saturday’s World Cup qualifying game against Zaire as the “most important game of my life, and one that we can’t lose under any circumstances”. And most certainly this is the last chance that Barker and a few of his players will have of achieving their dream of playing in the World Cup finals.
Defeat against an unpredictable Zaire will be a major blow to Bafana Bafana, who have never met the Central Africans before. However, it is expected that the visitors will bring most of their overseas contingent, based all over Europe, for this needle encounter.
Barker is well aware of the fact that only victory will be acceptable in each of South Africa’s three home games, and that anything less will seriously dent, and maybe end, their chances of reaching the finals in France in 1998.
A major cause for concern this week (and the future) is the form of captain and central defender, Neil Tovey, and whether the 34- year-old Kaizer Chiefs captain will last the pace until France. It definitely did not look that way when Chiefs were hammered 4-1 by Orlando Pirates in last week’s Bob Save Superbowl semi- final, when Tovey was pulled all across the field by the Sea Robbers superman, Jerry Sikhosana. But there were not many defenders, or clubs that would have been able to control Sikhosana and Pirates on the day, and to single out Tovey would be a bit unfair.
But Tovey has warned that to write him off now would be foolhardy. “All the criticism only makes me perform better, and I will prove them all wrong once again,” he said this week.
Sikhosana’s breathtaking peformances over the past week (he scored five goals in two games) has maybe secured his place in the starting line-up on Saturday.
It will also be interesting to see how Mark Fish copes after missing the Four Nations tournament. Though he is almost certain to be in the starting line-up, Fish has only played in the last three games for his Italian club Lazio, and his ability to last the pace for 90 minutes may be in question.
Two players on whom a lot will hinge are midfielders Eric Tinkler and Linda Buthelezi, both of whom could play a major role against a Zairean side that is likely to employ robust tactics, in the same manner they did against Ghana in the quarterfinal of the Nations Cup, when their intention was clearly to kick the daylights out of the talented Ghanaians.
This could well be the tactics they will adopt to unsettle the South Africans, but Barker has indicated that this is his strongest squad to date, and he will certainly be expecting them to produce their best.
GROUP 1
November 8-10: Nigeria v Burkina Faso, Guinea v Kenya
January 10-12: Kenya v Nigeria, Burkina Faso v Guinea
April 4-6: Nigeria v Guinea, Kenya v Burkina Faso
April 25-27: Burkina Faso v Nigeria, Kenya v Guinea
June 6-8: Nigeria v Kenya, Guinea v Burkina Faso
August 15-17: Guinea v Nigeria, Burkina Faso v Kenya
GROUP 2
November 8-10: Egypt v Namibia, Liberia v Tunisia
January 10-12: Tunisia v Egypt, Namibia v Liberia
April 4-6: Liberia v Egypt, Namibia v Tunisia
April 25-27: Namibia v Egypt, Tunisia v Liberia
June 6-8: Egypt v Tunisia, Liberia v Namibia
August 15-17: Egypt v Liberia, Tunisia v Namibia
GROUP 3
November 8-10: Congo v Zambia, South Africa v Zaire
January 10-12: Zambia v South Africa, Zaire v Congo
April 4-6: Zaire v Zambia, Congo v South Africa
April 25-27: Zambia v Congo, Zaire v South Africa
June 6-8: South Africa v Zambia, Congo v Zaire
August 15-17: Zambia v Zaire, South Africa v Congo
GROUP 4
November 8-10: Togo v Cameroon, Angola v Zimbabwe
January 10-12: Cameroon v Angola, Zimbabwe v Togo
April 4-6: Cameroon v Zimbabwe, Angola v Togo
April 25-27: Cameroon v Togo, Zimbabwe v Angola
June 6-8: Angola v Cameroon, Togo v Zimbabwe
August 15-17: Zimbabwe v Cameroon, Togo v Angola
GROUP 5
November 8-10: Morocco v Sierra Leone, Gabon v Ghana
January 10-12: Ghana v Morocco, Sierra Leone v Gabon
April 4-6: Gabon v Morocco, Sierra Leone v Ghana
April 25-27: Sierra Leone v Morocco, Ghana v Gabon
June 6-8: Morocco v Ghana, Gabon v Sierra Leone
August 15-17: Morocco v Gabon, Ghana v Sierra Leone
Burundi withdrew due to economic blockade and were replaced by Sierra Leone
Group winners qualify for finals in France in 1998