Verbeek names his squad for South Africa match
Socceroos Head Coach Pim Verbeek has selected an 18 -player squad for the upcoming international friendly match against South Africa at Loftus Road Stadium in London on Tuesday 19 August 2008.
Socceroos Head Coach Pim Verbeek has selected an 18 -player squad for the upcoming international friendly match against South Africa at Loftus Road Stadium in London on Tuesday 19 August 2008.
The squad features all-European based players with most having recently been involved in the 2010 FIFA World Cup Asian region qualification matches.
Verbeek has also included long serving Socceroos defender Scott Chipperfield who has recovered from a foot injury that has prevented him from appearing for the national team this year.
"We're looking forward to this match as part of our preparation for the crucial World Cup qualifier next month ," said Verbeek
"I have not selected any Hyundai A-League players in this squad because the match falls just at the beginning of the new Hyundai A-League season.
"I am very appreciative of the generosity of the coaches in the Hyundai A-League earlier this year, in letting players join the national team in the season, but it's important now when a new season starts that the Hyundai A-League can start with full strength squads ," concluded Verbeek.
The Socceroos are currently placed at 38th on the FIFA World Rankings, which were released earlier this week, whilst South Africa are at 73rd position and are the first nation to qualify for the 2010 FIFA World Cup as the hosts of the tournament.
Following this friendly match, the Socceroos will prepare for another international against the Netherlands at the Philips Stadium in Eindhoven on the 6 September ahead of their 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifying match against Uzbekistan in Tashkent on Wednesday 9 September.
Socceroos SQUAD TO PLAY SOUTH AFRICA
Michael Beauchamp - Aalborg BK, Denmark - 17 (1) Mark Bresciano - US Palermo, Italy - 42 (10) Nick Carle - Crystal Palace FC, England - 7 (0) Scott Chipperfield - FC Basel, Switzerland - 55 (11) Chris Coyne - Colchester United FC, England - 1 (0) Jason Culina - PSV Eindhoven, Netherlands - 32 (1) Brett Emerton - Blackburn Rovers, England - 66 (14) Vincenzo Grella - Torino FC Spa, Italy - 35 (0) Brett Holman - AZ Alkaamar, Netherlands - 16 (1) Josh Kennedy - Karlsruhe SC, Germany - 6 (2) Harry Kewell - Galatasaray SK, Turkey - 35 (11) Scott McDonald - Celtic FC, Scotland - 8 (0) Lucas Neill - West Ham United FC, England - 41 (0) Michael Petkovic - Sivasspor, Turkey - 6 (0) Mark Schwarzer - Fulham FC, England - 58 (0) Mile Sterjovski - Derby County FC, England - 34 (6) Carl Valeri - U.S. Grosseto FC, Italy - 10 (0) Luke Wilkshire - FC Twente, Holland - 26 (0)
Match Details Socceroos v South Africa Tuesday 19 August Kick-Off 8:00pm (2000hrs) BST (5:00am AEST, Wednesday 20 August 2008) Loftus Road Stadium South Africa Road, Shepherds Bush, W12 7PA, United Kingdom
Tickets QPR 0844 477 7007 or www.qpr.co.uk TICKETMASTER www.ticketmaster.co.uk