When South Africa coach Carlos Alberto Parreira admitted his side had "a mountain to climb", he wasn't thinking of his side's three Group A games at altitude. When he was originally appointed in 2007, Parreira was charged with improving a side ranked 69th in the world. Given Bafana Bafana now lie 83rd - behind Panama and Albania - it seems he has not been successful. No World Cup host has ever failed to progress from the first group stage, but there is a genuine fear that South Africa could be the worst home team in the tournament's history.
Parreira has found frustrations everywhere he has looked, with training camps in Brazil and Germany failing to provide quality opposition and the team's World Cup base still in limbo as late as March this year. The hope must be that an enthusiastic local crowd and a backdrop of vuvuzela trumpets can galvanise a team that needs all the help it can get. Whether that will be enough remains to be seen.
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