South Africa v England
International Friendly, Durban
Thursday 22nd May, 19.30

"I'm looking forward to seeing a game played in a special environment," he says.

"This game is a big one for both sides. England are two steps away from their very important game against Slovakia and Sven won't lose this opportunity to prepare well for that match.

"And for South Africa this is a their chance to have a big promotion, not only of the team and the fans but also the entire country."

Knowing the players on both sides so well, Queiroz is ideally placed to assess tonight's match-up.

"South Africa are certainly capable of causing problems to the big teams," he says.

"I was manager of South Africa for two years and in that time we drew at home with France and lost 1-0 away in Italy and that was a very open game too.

"For South Africa the biggest issues are availability and momentum. They have their big star players playing for teams abroad and, when, for instance, a World Cup qualifier comes around the manager does not know until only a few days before hand whether those big players will be able to play for him. 

"That is not enough. A nation like South Africa needs time with its players to be able to fulfil its potential as a footballing nation. While four days with players like Steven Gerrard and Paul Scholes might be enough to reach a good level of football, South Africa needs more time to get the right levels of consistency and harmony.

"If they can do that then they can start to be really competitive in the World Cup."

Ok then, cards on the table Carlos, what do you think the score will be tonight?

"The best result tonight is that it is a colourful, fun night to make everybody happy," he says, at first avoiding making a prediction....

"I'll go for 4-4!"

Now that would make people happy.

Carlos Queiroz was talking to Daniel Freedman

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South Africa v England: Match Centre