DREAMING OF RIO
Da Gama ‘excited’ about clash against hosts Brazil in the opening match
OWEN da Gama had memories of the Sydney Olympic Games in 2000 when his national under-23s were on Thursday drawn into the same group as Brazil for the Olympics in Rio.
Coached by Shakes Mashaba 16 years ago, South Africa’s best under-23 team — with the likes of Benni McCarthy, Quinton Fortune, Siyabonga Nomvethe and Matthew Booth — beat Brazil 3-1 in one of the country’s finest football moments.
In four months from now, Da Gama’s men will play the opening match at the Olympics against hosts Brazil and the word he used to describe the feeling was “exciting”.
It’s not something you expect to hear when you have to face the hosts in the opening match, but Da Gama has embraced the challenge of playing against the Brazilians, who will have Barcelona star and senior national team captain Neymar in their squad.
“It’s exciting. When we qualified for the Olympics, our first game was against the hosts Senegal (at the Caf Championship). Maybe this is a good omen for us,” Da Gama said.
“Our boys beat Brazil in 2000, so we will use that as motivation. Our planning now has to be spot-on and we have to work even harder. We believe in ourselves.”
In group A with Denmark and Iraq as well, the under-23s will not have it easy but can only start preparing for the Olympics once the Absa Premiership season is over next month.
Here’s a profile of their opponents in a tough group A.
Brazil August 4, Brasilia
It’s strange how, even though the finest young talent in world football comes from Brazil, they have never won Olympic gold. They’ve won silver three time and bronze twice.
After the seniors were beaten as hosts of the 2014 Fifa World Cup by Germany in the semifinals, the under-23s will be tasked with restoring some pride for the nation.
Da Gama said: “We have seen what they are about and they are a good team. We’re happy that we had a chance to play against them and that will help us in our preparation.
“They’ve got top players that we played against. We just have to make sure that we are ready for them.”
Denmark August 7, Brasilia
They have missed out on the gold medal a few times, claiming silver twice and bronze once.
The Danes, who last participated at the Olympics in 1992, finished top of their qualifying group ahead of Germany at the 2015 Uefa European Championship in the Czech Republic. Captain Jannik Vestergaard, Viktor Fischer and Rasmus Falk are players to watch.
Said Da Gama: “They have done well in Europe and we will be getting information on them.
“We were waiting for the draw to see who we will play.”
Iraq August 10, São Paulo
If there’s one thing Iraq showed in their last appearance at the Olympics in 2004 it’s that they can’t be taken for granted.
They claimed bronze after beating Portugal, Costa Rica and Australia on their way to the semifinal. By finishing third at the Asian Football Confederation Under-23 Championship in Qatar, Iraq booked a spot at the Olympics. They scored 27 goals on their way to qualification.
Da Gama said: “Before the draw, the Iraqis were asking to play a friendly against us. Now that’s out of the window.
“They are a closed book compared to Brazil and Denmark. We have tried doing some research.”