South Africa announce World Cup plans

March 31, 2008

South Africa have announced that their domestic football season will end three months early in 2010 to give national team manager Carlos Alberto Parreira maximum preparation time for the World Cup Finals.

The Premier Soccer League (PSL) will end in March instead of May, allowing the former Brazilian World Cup winners time to work with his squad in a specially arranged training camp. With South Africa hosting the 2010 Finals, the South African FA are understanably keen to do everything in their power to ensure the success of the national team at the tournament.

“We are doing this because we want to assist the national team in the best way we can. The World Cup year is a big football year,” PSL chief operating officer Ronnie Schloss told the Johannesburg-based Sunday Times newspaper.

Somewhat bizzarely, Parreira had requested that the players be released from their clubs a massive seven months before the tournament began, but that was understandbly rejected.

Parreira has been under fire over the team’s first-round exit at the CAF Africa Cup of Nations in January, with the team ranked only 71 in the world.

However, last weeks 3-0 victory over Paraguay - South Africa’s first victory over South American opposition - has eased the pressure in what was a much improved performance.

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