Former Bafana Bafana skipper Neil Tovey believes national coach Carlos Alberto Parreira should name his final squad for the World Cup immediately and then work on their team spirit.
Coaches have until June 1 to submit their 23-man squads for the global showpiece but Tovey says Parreira must not waste any time and start knuckling down with his chosen men instead of continuing to work with his preliminary squad.
With the clock ticking away, Parreira needs to get his selections in place and make sure they become like "one big family", as was the case when Bafana Bafana won the African Nations' Cup under Clive Barker in 1996, according to the AmaZulu coach.
"At the moment, the coach has players who are still wondering whether they are going to get picked. I believe he should make his cut, allow the players to relax and get them to play as a unit. He needs to start working on his final line-up," says Tovey.
"I am sure the coach already knows who is going to make the final squad, since he's experienced and he knows the players well. I think a critical area is building the right spirit among the players. As things stand, you have a lot of nervous energy because the players don't know if they are going to get picked.
"He should announce the final squad now."
Tovey also hopes Parreira will get his men to play positive football that will unsettle the opposition and yield goals. It must not be a "safety first" approach.
"We must not play the way we did during the 2009 Confederations Cup, with two defensive midfielders and only one striker. We must use two out-and-out strikers, Benni McCarthy and Katlego Mphela, and three attacking midfielders, with just one defensive midfielder. We must not give other teams too much respect. We can't sit back.
"It will also be important that the players get their first touch right, as that makes passing easier and allows them to do it earlier," Tovey said.
Though Bafana reached the third-place play-off in the Confederations Cup, they had actually only won one game.
"In the World Cup, it is critical that Bafana win their first match against Mexico. That is key to their whole performance.
"They need a good start. That would set them up to advance from the group with the crowd really behind them. If we play positive football, we can finish second to France in the group," says Tovey.
Bafana will play Mexico at Soccer City in Johannesburg on June 11 and then tackle Uruguay at Loftus Stadium in Pretoria on June 16 before meeting France at Vodacom Park in Bloemfontein on June 22.
For the next round, Bafana's group is pitted against Group B, so Parreira's men could face Argentina in that phase, while France could meet Greece unless the Nigerians spring a surprise.
Tovey, a former star defender who always talks a good game, shares the common view that Brazil and Spain will start as favourites and that an African team could cause an upset in the knockout rounds.
"In predicting a winner, you have to look at the perennial contenders. Spain and Brazil will be favoured, partly because both will be used to the climate after having featured in the Confederations Cup here.
"The Germans always knock on the door while England will have their best chance since 1966 because of their current crop of players and they have a manager who is on top of his game in Fabio Capello.
"I think they have a problem in their goalkeeping department, and on the right side of defence, but could still make the semi-finals. It will be important for them that Wayne Rooney has a good tournament.
"As for the Africans, Ivory Coast have a good team. They are in a tough group with Brazil and Portugal but will be dangerous. Ghana will also be dangerous if they get all their players back. They have a bad injury situation at the moment."
The Ghanaians, who are grouped with Germany, Australia and Serbia, are really worried about the fitness of Michael Essien, Stephen Appiah and Jonathan Mensah with less than a month to go to the tournament.
On the whole, says Tovey, the football will be wonderful and the cooler conditions will allow for enterprising play.
"I am really looking forward to the tournament. I think it is going to be a very colourful event. I don't think some South Africans realise how big it is going to be."