Bafana Bafana coach Stuart Baxter has explained why he did not include Cape Town City striker Kermit Erasmus in his previous squads.
Eyebrows were raised when an in-form Erasmus was left out of the Bafana squad for the final Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against Libya in March, as Lars Veldwijk was picked ahead of the Citizens forward.
Erasmus in the 30-man provisional squad for the upcoming Africa Cup of Nations in Egypt and will be hoping to form part of the team that represents the nation in the 24-team competition next month.
"Kermit is one of the players that has been around us. We chose not to include him in previous camps because I always felt that it was too quick. I had a long conversation with Benni McCarthy before the last camp and I explained that he did a good job with Kermit. He put his arm around him and made him feel important again," Baxter said.
"I also said to Benni, and he agreed with me, that I could not guarantee Kermit that place in Bafana and I thought that when he came back he should really be equipped to understand the situation. I think he understands the situation now because he has worked hard during the season. Without promising him anything, he has managed to get himself back into the fold."