/ 12 March 2007

Parreira starts preparing Bafana for 2010

New coach Carlos Alberto Parreira’s desire to organise more regular matches for his new team as they prepare for the 2010 World Cup finals has seen South Africa announce a friendly later this month against Bolivia.

South Africa will host the South Americans in Durban or Johannesburg on March 28, just days after returning from an African Nations Cup qualifier in Chad on March 25.

The venue is being finalised later this week.

Parreira, who took over as South Africa’s coach in January, called for frequent friendlies as he sought to put a team together for the tournament that South Africa will host in just over three years.

The match in Chad marks the Brazilian coach’s official debut as coach but South Africa will turn out a team of locally based players on Tuesday in a friendly against neighbours Swaziland in Johannesburg.

The match has been described as a ”training game” and is not being regarded as an official international, the South African Football Association said. — Reuters