Bafana Bafana defender Diamond Thopola has warned against taking lowly ranked Guinea-Bissau and Angola lightly in their international friendlies.
Bafana first lock horns with the west Africans who are ranked 80th in the world and 19th on the continent on Saturday before turning their attention to neighbours Angola on Tuesday.
Bafana are ranked 62nd in the world and 13th in Africa.
On paper at least, Bafana Bafana should have an easy day at the office against both sets of visitors.
But the Chippa United defender has warned against taking Angola lightly, saying rankings will count for nothing in the southern African derby.
"We take each game serious. We just have to go out there and give it our best shot. Most of the teams when they play against South Africa go all out because they always want to beat us.
"We are well aware of that. We have studied both opponents and know what to expect from them. We are more than ready for them," said Thopola.
The Chilli Boys man has been called up to Bafana two times before but did not get an opportunity to play.
Yesterday, he was part of the team that did duty in the 1-0 win over Lamontville Golden Arrows in a warm-up game.
Speaking after the Arrows game, Thopola described the mood in camp as good. "The coaches have explained what they want from us. For us, these are not just friendly games because we are preparing ourselves for the bigger picture.
"We have to start now with these two friendly games to test ourselves on how ready we are on what we want to achieve. We will push very hard and give it our best," he said.
Thopola said he hopes to be given a run.
"I would appreciate it if I could get a chance to play because I am familiar with the Bafana set-up now. It means a lot for me to be part of the national team.
"This means for me as a player, I am growing. I've been playing well in the PSL and doing well for my team, but it's up to the coach if he plays me or not," he said.
Thopola hopes for 1st cap
Bafana Bafana defender Diamond Thopola has warned against taking lowly ranked Guinea-Bissau and Angola lightly in their international friendlies.
Bafana first lock horns with the west Africans who are ranked 80th in the world and 19th on the continent on Saturday before turning their attention to neighbours Angola on Tuesday.
Bafana are ranked 62nd in the world and 13th in Africa.
On paper at least, Bafana Bafana should have an easy day at the office against both sets of visitors.
But the Chippa United defender has warned against taking Angola lightly, saying rankings will count for nothing in the southern African derby.
"We take each game serious. We just have to go out there and give it our best shot. Most of the teams when they play against South Africa go all out because they always want to beat us.
"We are well aware of that. We have studied both opponents and know what to expect from them. We are more than ready for them," said Thopola.
The Chilli Boys man has been called up to Bafana two times before but did not get an opportunity to play.
Yesterday, he was part of the team that did duty in the 1-0 win over Lamontville Golden Arrows in a warm-up game.
Speaking after the Arrows game, Thopola described the mood in camp as good. "The coaches have explained what they want from us. For us, these are not just friendly games because we are preparing ourselves for the bigger picture.
"We have to start now with these two friendly games to test ourselves on how ready we are on what we want to achieve. We will push very hard and give it our best," he said.
Thopola said he hopes to be given a run.
"I would appreciate it if I could get a chance to play because I am familiar with the Bafana set-up now. It means a lot for me to be part of the national team.
"This means for me as a player, I am growing. I've been playing well in the PSL and doing well for my team, but it's up to the coach if he plays me or not," he said.
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