Neymar
and Khune will come face-to-face again when South Africa hosts Brazil in an
international friendly match at FNB Stadium in Johannesburg on Wednesday, 5
March 2014. Kick-off is at 19h00.
The
two players met for the first time in Sao Paolo two years ago. The home side
won the match 1-0 from a late Hulk goal, with Neymar failing to get one past
Khune.
“I
am relishing the prospect of meeting him again. I want to foil him, that is my
aim this time around,” said the acrobatic goal-minder who will captain Bafana
Bafana in this historic meeting.
One
of the most skilful players in the world, Neymar has recently returned from
injury and is now playing for his club again and could be a thorn in the Bafana
Bafana defence.
The
lanky striker scored a gem of a goal at the weekend when Barcelona walloped
Rayo 6-0 at Nou Camp.
Neymar
won the Golden Boot Award at the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup which the home
side won when they beat reigning world champions Spain 3-0 with Neymar scoring
the second goal.
“Ï
am very excited to face Neymar again, and I want to believe the rest of the
players are too. He tried his best to be on the score sheet in our last match
when we met but I thwarted him now and again.
“I
would like to believe he still has a score to settle with me in particular and
try to beat me but I am prepared for the battle. I want to ensure that he
doesn’t have that joy. We must just do our homework and half the battle will be
won,” said Khune of the upcoming Soccer City battle on 5 March 2014.
“But
on the other hand, it is not just about Neymar because the Brazilian team has a
galaxy of world class stars who play for the likes of Barcelona, Chelsea,
Bayern Munich, Real Madrid and others. So we have to be on guard for the entire
90 minutes as they have defenders like David Luiz, Marcelo and Dani Alves who
can also score goals from anywhere.”
Khune
will be playing against Brazil for the third time. The first time was in the
2009 FIFA Confederations Cup in South Africa. The second time was in an
international friendly match in Sao Paolo three years later.
”This
should be a titanic match. We are really looking forward to welcoming Brazil on
our shores again and surely people should just come in numbers and enjoy this
game.
“On
my part, I am hoping for third time lucky since we lost the last two
encounters. Players and fans alike are excited and talking about this match
which gives us a morale booster. We have to use the same mentality that we had
for the Spain match if we are to get a positive result against what I consider
the best team in the world,” said South Africa’s number one keeper.
”But
that is not to say we are going to be complacent or big-headed having beaten
Spain. It is a different match, different set of players and perhaps different
styles of play but we are confidnent that we can do the business. I am almost
certain though that they saw our match with Spain and will come here with more
will to win because they know what to expect, and they are fine-tuning their
squad in preparation for the 2014 FIFA World Cup which they are hosting. So
they would not want to come and lose. But we must stick to our game plan and
even go the extra mile than we did against Spain because Brazil is a tough side
to beat. “
Tickets
for this match are already on sale at Computicket, Shoprite, Checkers and
Shoprite/Checkers stores countrywide and Khune has urged the fans to come out
in numbers.
“It
will be great to see many fans, many more than those who turned out to watch us
beat Spain. The fans were outstanding with their support when we beat Spain and
we believe they can do it again,” concluded the Bafana Bafana captain.
Tickets
are going for R50 for the top tier; R200 for the middle tier and R100 for the
bottom tier.
