Carlos Alberto Parreira is set to arrive in South Africa later this week to take over the reigns as the new national team coach, with the country expecting the two time FIFA World Cup Winner to use his vast experience to help turn around the fortunes of the national team.

The new coach has not wasted time going about his job and has already begun laying the groundwork for his arrival in the country, which is expected to be on Friday morning. Parreira has shown that he is serious about succeeding in his new job as Bafana Bafana coach, and has already sent out call up’s to a number of players to be part of a training camp he will be holding between the 4th and 8th February.

The incumbent Bafana Bafana coach has called up five Chiefs players to his training camp, which will consist of a total of twenty- six players thirteen of whom are from PSL teams. While the remainder of the squad is made up of foreign based players, Chiefs defender Siphiwe Mkhonza one of the Chiefs players who have been asked by Parreira to take part in the training camp next month said of his call up. “My aim is to consistently be a part of the national team set up for the next few years, getting the nod to attend this camp is definitely a step in the right direction”.

While Mkhonza looks forward to making his way to the training camp early next month, he might have to do so without teammate Siphiwe Tshabalala who could miss out on the camp through injury. Kaizer Chiefs team manager Bobby Motaung explains further, “I will communicate with SAFA shortly explaining to them that at the moment Siphiwe Tshabalala is injured, we are sending him for some tests on Thursday and hopefully after that we will be able to provide them with more information on his injury”.

Kaizer Chiefs coach Ernst Middendorp was happy for the players who were called up by Parreira for the camp adding “this is an opportunity for our players who have been given the nod by Carlos to impress him, being part of the camp is the first stage for them to be regularly in the national team all the way to the 2010 FIFA World Cup”. Rounding off the Chiefs representation at the camp are Goalkeeper Rowen Fernandez, club captain Cyril Nzama and midfielder Siyabonga Nkosi all of whom have over the past six months have featured regularly for Bafana Bafana under caretaker coach Pitso Mosimane.