Hugo Broos has revealed the dilemma he faced when it came to overlooking in-form Mamelodi Sundowns starlet Cassius Mailula for his latest Bafana Bafana squad.
Highly-rated midfielder Cassius Mailula has emerged as one of the hottest prospects in South AFrican football this season after breaking into Mamelodi Sundowns' first team in recent weeks.
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The 21-year-old made his senior debut for Masandawana against Chippa United in September and has since scored five goals in eight appearances, including two in just his second CAF Champions League outing last month.
Mailula displaced veteran Themba Zwane in Downs' starting XI in the two matches prior to the international break and rewarded his manager's faith by netting twice in the 5-0 win over Maritzburg United and again in the 3-0 win over Royal AM.
Despite his rapid rise to prominence, the Limpopo-born youngster was overlooked for national team selection by Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos, who admitted that he could not find place him among his more established counterparts.
"But you know, it is always the same. Saying which players to take is easy, but if I ask you, 'If I take Mailula, who do I have to take out? Who do I have to take out?' then it is not so easy," Broos said during his squad announcement on SABC Sport.
"You can't play with 15, and you can't have 35 players [in your squad] so you have to make choices. I was happy with (Zakhele) Lepasa, I was happy with (Lyle) Foster, who scores regularly now in Belgium, but Mailula is on the list, and when he can go on, who knows."
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