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South African team not ready for World Cup - Parreira
JOHANNESBURG (AFP) - The national team of hosts South Africa is "far from ready" for the 2010 World Cup, according to its Brazilian coach Carlos Alberto Parreira.
The man who led his country to the 1994 World Cup title spoke to AFP Wednesday after a hectic spell for Bafana Bafana (The Boys) in which they recovered from a 3-1 drubbing by Zambia to hold Uruguay goalless.
"It's just the beginning. I have been here for eight months. You don't have a (best) team in eight months. We need much more time. Maybe only by next February or March.
"It's a building process going to the African Nations Cup in 2008, (and the 2009) Confederations Cup. Now it's just the beginning of the work ..."
He acknowledged problems with the team, who automatically qualify for the World Cup as hosts and squeezed into Nations Cup finals last weekend as one of the best runners-up having surrendered first place to Zambia.
"It is not easy to change a way of playing, the style, the culture ... it's against my religion to play the ball long, not building from behind, holding possession. I don't think it's (the) right way, especially for Africans."
Among problems Parreira identified since taking charge last January was the goal-shy nature of local players and those in the national team.
"It's a problem of world football. Brazil is also now struggling with finishing. They are missing Ronaldo, missing other players and coach Dunga is trying many players ... they miss a player in the box who can really finish.
"Here in South Africa it's a problem also ... we need more players, replacements in case of injury or anything happening."
He said his proposal to establish junior leagues and create a pool of fresh talent seems to have been ignored by football officials.
"It's a pity because youth teams are not playing (in South Africa) to give us foundations, replacements.
"We will always have a problem, always struggle. People need to realise it's not for me, it's for the country. I leave after (the) World Cup, the country needs grassroots.
"The power of Brazil, Argentina, England, Italy is the youth level. They have the (youth) training in the clubs, they have the leagues. If we don't make this ... we always gonna struggle to have a sharp senior team," Parreira added.
Parreira said he would love to win the World Cup for Africa and has presented a master plan to the South African Football Association (Safa).
"Yes, of course (I would like to win it for Africa). But we have to be realistic. Our first task is to jump to the next round and take it step by step.
"First, we have to build a team, find a way of positional play, have a philosophy of play, (and) try as many players as we can.
"In 2007 and 2008 mainly you have to check all the players in the country. In 2009 and 2010 we have to concentrate mainly on building the team."
Parreira signed a four-year 252,000-dollar-a-month contract having led four national teams to the World Cup - Kuwait (1982), United Arab Emirates (1990), Brazil (1994 and 2006) and Saudi Arabia (1998) - during a 38-year career.
He is undaunted by the task of transforming Bafana Bafana, who failed to qualify for the 2006 World Cup in Germany and lie 61st in the world rankings, into a formidable side by the 2010 tournament.
Parreira, the 16th Bafana coach in 17 years, has already succeeded where many failed by convincing Benni McCarthy to end a 19-month exile triggered by a row over 2006 African Nations Cup bonuses.
And it took the 64-year-old Brazilian grandfather just six minutes to get the talented but temperamental Blackburn Rovers striker back into the fold.
"I arranged an appointment and he said 'coach, yes I will come'," said Parreira while refusing to reveal details of the discussion.
"It was a very nice conversation, we speak together three hours. But the key point (his return) was in five, six minutes. We didn't need more than this," he added proudly.
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