Bafana ‘no pushover’

IGESUND: SA WILL BE COMPETITIVE AGAINST SPAIN, PROMISE COACH

The Spaniards have beaten Bafana in all three their meetings.

Gordon Igesund has vowed that Bafana Bafana will put up a competitive display when they face world and European champions Spain tomorrow evening.

Igesund said his team is not going to be overawed by the CV the Europeans bring to FNB Stadium in the friendly international.

“I can tell you that we will be competitive against them,” he said. “We will also not sit back allow them play but we are planning to go at them.”

Tomorrow night’s encounter is the fourth meeting between the two nations, with La Roja winning all three previous encounters.

At the 2002 World Cup in Korea and Japan, Spain won 3-2, four years ago in the Confederations Cup, the Spaniards beat Bafana in the group stages of the competition 2- 0 while also beating the hosts 3-2 in the semifinals of that tournament.

While the clash does not hold much significance in terms of the plans for both nations, for La Roja it will be their first return to the venue where they won the World Cup three years ago.

And they have been vocal about playing at FNB Stadium to rekindle that victory ahead of next year’s World Cup in Brazil.

Bafana’s game against the world champions is seen as a clash which can be likened to an ant trying to scare an elephant as Spain are ranked No 1 in the world, contrary to Bafana’s 61st spot on the rankings.

“The gap between the so-called football powerhouses in the world and the minnows is closing and I think we are also going to be tough opponents for the,” Igesund said. “We will not be pushovers.”

Both nations recorded wins over the weekend. Bafana beat hapless Swaziland 3-0 in Mbabane on Friday night while Spain beat Equatorial Guinea 2-1 in Malabo the day after.

Igesund’s midfield dynamo Dean Furman, left, said this is a massive game for Bafana and that they will be out to show Spain what Bafana is capable of.

“We will be playing at our home ground and our fans will be behind us, so we just need to show Spain that we can play,” Furman said.

The match starts at 9pm.