TS Galaxy chairman Tim Sukazi’s vision for South African football is starting to take shape, as the Rockets goalkeeper Melusi Buthelezi has attracted interest from abroad. Buthelezi’s career took a quantum leap in September last year after he was called up to the Bafana Bafana squad by head coach Hugo Broos and was handed his first cap in a friendly international against Sierra Leone.
The 24-year old has been part of Broos’ squads since then and during the FIFA World Cup break had a chance to test himself against overseas opposition after the Mpumalanga-based side took their mid-season camp to Turkey. Sead Ramovic’s charges played FIFA approved friendly matches against Turkish side Giresunspor, Sampdoria of Italy and Saudi Arabia’s Al-Batin.
Soccer Laduma has been led to believe that Buthelezi picked up admirers during the tour, although no concrete offers have reached Sukazi’s office yet. Upon his return from Europe, the former sports agent urged clubs in the PSL to follow in their footsteps and start touring Europe, to give players exposure to overseas teams, where they stand a better chance of being recruited than going to trials individually.
Sukazi believes the initiative to get closer to the European teams, in the long-term, will see South African players moving overseas regularly and that would strengthen the national team. “If four, five clubs would do such a thing and plus players from South Africa get an opportunity to be seen, in their own setup, playing for their own teams, as opposed to them going for trials,” Sukazi said on Marawa Sports Worldwide. “And maybe get an opportunity to be snatched by one or two clubs, we as a country, would be like the Senegals of this world, the Ghanaians of this world, have a plethora, a number of players playing in Europe. So I think that could come and assist our national team,” he added.
TS Galaxy chairman Tim Sukazi’s ambitious plans for South African football may have taken a step closer to fruition, as goalkeeper Melusi Buthelezi has attracted interest from abroad. Buthelezi, who was called up to the Bafana Bafana squad by head coach Hugo Broos in September last year, had the chance to test himself against overseas opposition during the FIFA World Cup break, when the Mpumalanga-based side toured Turkey. During the tour, Buthelezi picked up admirers, although no concrete offers have reached Sukazi’s office yet.
Sukazi has urged clubs in the PSL to follow in their footsteps and start touring Europe, to give players exposure to overseas teams, where they stand a better chance of being recruited than going to trials individually. The former sports agent believes that the initiative, in the long-term, will see South African players moving overseas regularly and that would strengthen the national team.
The Siya crew will continue to follow the story closely in the coming months, as Galaxy are not expected to stand in Buthelezi’s way should a concrete offer be made for his services.
