Argentina Demand $1.5 Million For South Africa Clash

With the World Cup just over two months away, teams continue to prepare for the major show piece.

And with so much pressure on the host to perform, the South African squad is currently in South America for a training camp.

They have played already played six training games against local teams in Brazil and will play World Cup hopefuls Paraguay on March 30.

Thereafter the team will fly to Germany for another training camp where they are scheduled to play Finland and China.

The current training squad comprises mainly of locally based players, those who play in the SA Premier League (PSL). European based players were not included due to their club responsibilities.

Carlos Perreira has asked for better opposition during the training as this will help him measure he readiness of the players.

Since the Chile clash was cancelled, Argentina was the next most suitable country  to play against since South Africa have two American teams matched in the group phase.

But the two federations are unable to come to an agreement due to financial delays. The Argentinian Federation is requesting $1.5 Million for a game at the newly renovated Soccer City, Johannesburg. But SAFA (South African Football Association) are not willing to fork out the money.

With already so much spent on the World Cup, Billions spent on Stadiums, Road Infrastructure and Entertainment for the tourist and local fans, is another $1.5 Million such a huge issue?

Already signs of improvement is visible since the start of the training camp, and the players are working extremely hard to prove that they earn a spot in the final squad.

So will the Argentinian and South African relevant authorities come to terms, or will South Africa continue playing weak teams in match preparation...these questions need to be answers by SAFA.

Nevertheless come June 11, Bafana Bafana will take on Mexico at the Soccer City Stadium, a 94 000 seater buzzing with the noise of the Vuvuzella!!