We need more South African players abroad – Happy Jele

The ex-Bafana Bafana defender’s comment was triggered by the launch of the IberCup International, a youth tournament scheduled for Gauteng in December.

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A product of the development system in the country himself, Jele hopes this upcoming competition can prove SA players deserve opportunities abroad.

''This initiative is very good, as you know - in South Africa we 80% struggle with development most of the time. This initiative will help more youngsters to develop themselves and it will help Bafana Bafana as well. I feel like we  need more players to play overseas to help the national team,'' said Jele.

Jele, however, bemoaned the lack of structures that enabled him to pursue a career in elite football, making over 300 appearances for The Buccaneers and also getting Bafana call-ups in that period.

''I will talk about myself, the opportunity that I got when we talk about development - back then there were a lot of school tournaments, we had Coca cola, Mcdonald's and Transnet tournaments, those tournaments helped us to play in bigger teams. I feel that is lacking in South Africa currently, and I think this initiative will help us to develop a lot of players,'' added Jele.

The 37-year-old, who is currently a SABC Sport analyst, has full confidence in local players adapting to overseas conditions.

 ''It is an opportunity for youngsters to believe in themselves at a young age. Because if you want to play overseas you need to compete with big teams first and that is what I like with IberCup there's a lot of teams from abroad who will come here and play against South African players. Being developed at a young age is a life skill, and I think some of our players can be selected to go abroad at a young age and they will get a better understanding of football, he concluded.

Jele added the fact that a few DStv Diski Challenge graduates have not only cemented their place at PSL clubs, but others have gone on to secure moves to the USA, Belgium and North Africa, is further evidence thereof.