Spend five minutes at a South African press conference and it's not difficult to see why Sheffield Wednesday officials were a little taken aback by Phillippe Troussier's manner when they talked to him about their managerial vacancy. Certainly anyone who reckons `the game just doesn't have the characters it used to' should meet him. Yesterday Troussier didn't allow any of his players to talk to the media and, after several attempted to, you got the feeling they were going to hear about it later. Troussier apparently wanted them to focus on today's game and noting else.
A little rich, perhaps, from a man who has been busily negotiating his own future and one whose hand would be greatly strengthened by his side winning tonight. On the basis of the game against France that doesn't look likely but Troussier remains very positive dismissing the opening game while emphasising the importance of this one but he declined to make any predictions.
His cause is boosted by the surprise recovery of striker Benedict McCarthy who picked up an ankle injury in the game against France. His striking partner, Phil Massinga, is out with a shin problem so Shaun Bartlett comes into the starting 11. Danish coach, Bo Johansson, meanwhile, busied himself cautioning against over confidence. However, he is likely to be confident enough to keep faith with an unchanged side.
Probable Teams
Denmark: Schmeichel, Rieper, Hogh, Colding, Schjonberg, Helveg, Wieghorst, Jorgensen, M Laudrup, B Laudrup, Sand.
South Africa: Nyathi, Radebe, Moshoeu, Fortune, Augustine, Bartlett, McCarthy.
Referee: John J Toto Rendon (Colombia).
Key Player: Marc Rieper. Age: 30. Caps: 53. Goals: 2. Club: Celtic.
Strengths: His goal in the first game will reinforce his standing as one of Denmark's biggest stars. But, even if he doesn't keep banging them in for the Danes over the remaining matches, Rieper's performances will be vital if his side is to prosper.
Big and strong, the 30-year-old maintains a powerful presence in his own area where he is good in the air and a fearless tackler.
Can also, as he demonstrated last week, get forward when required and actually had a spell as striker during his days at Brondby. Weaknesses: Rieper is a born ball winner and for that reason alone he would be in Johansson's team. He's not the most graceful of players and what happens after he wins possession is not always what a manager would like to see. He certainly could be a better distributor.
Of more immediate concern is his tendency to get into disciplinary problems and the fact that he got booked against Saudi Arabia, and so is only one card away from a suspension, may inhibit his game today. If he is suspended for the last group game it would leave Johansson with a large gap to fill.
