Helman Mkhalele thrilled to test new crop of Bafana Bafana stars

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With Hugo Broos excused from overseeing regional tournaments, Mkhalele has been tasked with taking charge and all eyes will be on the 23-man squad selected.

Speaking to SABC Sport, ‘Midnight Express’ elaborated on what led to some high-profile players being left out from the final selection set to feature in Gqeberha.

"We, as a technical team, we are also excited by the type of players that we have brought in, as we all know that initially we released a list of 52 players, which shows we have massive talent in the country," said Mkhalele.

"Unfortunately, some of the players couldn't make it because of many reasons – some tactical reasons and other team factors."

South Africa open their campaign against Mozambique at Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium this evening, with Mkhalele adding that the idea is to see which players are fit for the international stage.

"Having this crop of players here in our camp, we are really excited and we are looking forward to giving them international exposure, as we have alluded that it is critical for us to have a huge database to choose from," he noted.

"Because we are anticipating a number of qualifiers – both for the Africa Cup of Nations and the FIFA World Cup, so it's important for us to have a bigger pool of players to choose from."

As hosts, Bafana are expected to rise to the occasion, but the coach warns their group will not be a walk in the park.

"It is a tough group. We know the Mozambicans have been giving us problems when we come up against them, but when we look at the overall group, it's quite a tough one.

"We have played against eSwatini, and it ended in a draw, and if you look at the performances of all the teams from the SADEC region, they've improved and are doing very well," he concluded.

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