South Africa is one of the four founding nations of the Confederation of African Football (CAF). However, their membership was promptly revoked because of the apartheid problem that plagued the country for decades. The return to the international football scene came in the early 1990s, and the Bafana Bafana, or the Team of Boys, made sure it was a memorable one. South Africa hosted the 1996 African Cup of Nations and won it after beating Tunisia 2-0 in the final. Two years later they lost to Egypt 2-0 in the final to clinch silver. Later that year they represented Africa at the World Cup finals in France for the first time. With South Africa's golden generation of players way past their prime, coach Parreira, who was brought in 2007, opted to rejuvenate the team. He went for a number of young players, who South Africans hope can bring back the glory days of the 1990s and prepare for the 2010 World Cup finals that will take place on their home soil. If the 2008 Ghana qualifying campaign is any indication of how things will go in the finals then South Africa are by no means favorites to win the title. They finished second in the qualifying Group K on 11 points, training Zambia who had a better head-to-head record. Coach: Carlos Alberto Parreira (Brazil) The legendary Brazilian coach is a household name. The 64-year-old claims he "never thought of becoming a football coach," yet he has done very well for himself. Parreira was never a professional footballer but tasted World Cup glory as a fitness coach for Brazil's fabled 1970 team. Parreira then moved up the ladder, guiding Kuwait and UAE to the 1982 and 1990 World Cup finals, respectively, before winning the title with Brazil in 1994. He has another shot at the title when he coach Brazil again in 2006, but the star-studded team failed him and exited from the quarter-finals after some lackluster feat. Star Player: Steven Pienaar Pienaar is an attacking minded midfielder who made a name for himself with Dutch giants Ajax Amsterdam among the likes of Rafael van der Vaart, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Ahmed Hossam Mido, Andy van der Meyde, and Hatem Trabelsi He became a pivotal member of the Ajax team that won the Dutch League in 2002 and 2004. Despite his relatively young age, Pienaar is looked upon as a leader in midfield with both his club and country. Pienaar was called upon by Borussia Dortmund to replace Tomas Rosicky who joined Arsenal in 2006, but the South African international was not able to cope with the more demanding Bundesliga. The 25-year-old Pienaar was loaned to Premiership side Everton this season and has proven he still is the probing midfielder and dynamo he once was at Ajax. Pienaar and his Everton teammates Mikel Arteta and Leon Osman have been dubbed by many Merseyside journalists as the "Midget Gems" due to them all being small but creative midfielders. Pienaar is an integral part of coach Parreira's squad in Ghana with his gutsy approach for the game and huge commitment.
