‘Include U20s in senior team’

Radebe advocates for the youth

Ex-Bafana Bafana captain Lucas Radebe said he would have loved to see at least one of the current under-20 players in the Bafana squad that will travel to Nigeria for the Afcon qualifier match on Saturday.

A fortnight ago, Stuart Baxter named his first squad since returning as head coach of the SA senior national team.

Heading into a crucial encounter in Nigeria, Radebe has lauded the squad but has also revealed he was concerned about the lack of Amajita players in the mix.

“I like this squad. It is very strong and they will beat Nigeria, but I would have liked to see at least one player who was in South Korea with the U20s. These boys must be given a chance because if we do not play them at the higher level, they will not develop as players,” Radebe said yesterday.

Amajita have just returned from the ongoing Fifa U20 World Cup where they failed to advance to the knockout phase after registering only one goal in three matches.

However, “Rhoo” maintains the boys must be selected in the Bafana squad although they didn’t live up to their potential at the international showpiece.

“I know that they didn’t do well at the World Cup, but that should not be the only thing we think of them. They must be introduced to the senior squad sooner rather than later,” said the retired defender.