Formidable challenge for Parreira and South Africa

Carlos Alberto Parreira will make a fourth attempt to lead a country other than his native Brazil into the second round of the World Cup when he guides hosts South Africa at the 2010 finals.

The other efforts bore little fruit with Kuwait (1982), the United Arab Emirates (1990) and Saudi Arabia (1998) making first-round exits without winning a match.

He did not even get a chance to complete his first-round schedule with the Saudis, who fired the South American after two losses in France condemned them to an early flight home.

Parreira, a 66-year-old who steered Brazil to the 1994 title and the quarter-finals three years ago, has Mexico, Uruguay and France as Group A first-round rivals after the Friday draw in Cape Town.

The draw could have been worse, but it could also have been a lot kinder to a host nation who have had a miserable year, winning one of their last 11 matches and scoring just 10 goals in 18 outings.

It is not the form to send shivers down spines in Mexico City, Montevideo and Paris, and Parreira is banking heavily on a March training camp in his homeland to rectify wrongs.

But hopes of getting his Europe-based stars like Portsmouth midfielder Aaron Mokoena, Everton wide man Steven Pienaar and Blackburn Rovers striker Benni McCarthy released on non-FIFA dates are unlikely to be realised.

McCarthy, who drifts in and out of the national team like a yo-yo, staged his latest comeback in goalless home friendlies against Japan and Jamaica last month.

Ring rusty through lack of game time with his English Premier League club, McCarthy did not get a single chance in either game to enhance a self-proclaimed reputation as a deadly finisher.

If a goal drought is the biggest concern for Parreira, his worries do not end there, with big midfield hope Teko Modise badly off form and the defence prone to conceding goals from set pieces.

South Africa made their World Cup debut at the 1998 tournament and lost 3-0 to hosts France in Marseille with Pierra Issa conceding two own goals, so there is a score to settle in their June 22 Bloemfontein clash.

Bafana Bafana took a hiding from Mexico in a United States-based tournament and fought a dull goalless friendly draw with Uruguay in Johannesburg last year.