Rustenburg, South Africa - After outplaying New Zealand in
their Confederations Cup game in Rustenburg on Wednesday night, South
Africa are confident ahead of their final group match against Spain
in Bloemfontein on Saturday.
The 2-0 victory against the All Whites takes Bafana Bafana to four
points in Group A, two behind the already qualified European
champions, while Iraq, who face New Zealand in their last game are on
one point.
A draw or victory would guarantee South Africa a place in the
semi-finals, while a defeat would mean their continued participation
depends on the score of the match between Iraq and New Zealand.
Earlier on Wednesday the Spaniards equalled the record of 14
consecutive victories by beating Iraq 1-0 in Bloemfontein and a win
against South Africa would ensure they hold the record themselves.
The are also unbeaten in 34 games and just two matches shy of
breaking Brazil's record of 35 games without defeat.
South African coach Joel Santana said he is not too concerned
about the record. 'Congratulations on their record,' he said after
his side had beaten New Zealand.
'But I am not worried about their record. They have a group of
experienced players and we have to respect them.
'But we have to play our own game. We have good players and the
match between Spain and South Africa will be a great game.'
He once again praised his players for the way in which they had
dominated throughout the game against New Zealand. 'It is difficult
to play well and beautiful in a competition like the COnfederations
Cup, but we managed that against New Zealand.'
Midfielder Macbeth Sibaya, who played his 50th game for Bafana
Bafana against New Zealand, said he did not think that the fact that
Spain had already qualified for the semi-finals and are likely to
rest several key players an advantage.
'I think they are the favourites and even if they have already
qualified they will be dangerous. Playing a B side is even more
difficult because it is players who do not play regularly and want to
shine and show up their skill and make it to the first eleven,' he
said.
Captain Aaron Mokoena said that his side will go into a game
against Spain full of confidence after outplaying New Zealand. 'We
did well in our last game. I think we do not need to be scared of
Spain.
'We have to believe that Iraq can beat New Zealand and that means
we have to get a result against Spain. We will go into the match
wanting to win.
'It is going to be a difficult game, but we are confident. We are
expecting Spain to come out and give us a tough time. Those are the
games that will test our form.
'We can still make the semi-finals because we play as a team. We
are quite confident.'
He said that he was looking forward to taking on the likes of
David Villa and Fernando Torres.
The defender, who has just moved from English Premier League side
Blackburn Rovers to Portsmouth, said that he has already played
against Liverpool's Torres.
'That time Liverpool won, but I hope that it will be a different
outcome this time around,' he said.
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