Head coach Hugo Broos had plenty of praise for Orlando Pirates midfielder Thalente Mbatha, who received his first call-up to Bafana Bafana ahead of two crucial AFCON qualifiers.
Broos' troops are set for two testing encounters against Uganda and South Sudan in the 2025 AFCON Qualifiers to be played in September.
The Belgian has named his final 23-man squad, which includes new faces like Kaizer Chiefs' Rushwin Dortley and the Buccaneers duo of Mbatha and Sipho Chaine.
READ | Chaine, Mbatha, Dortley headline Bafana's final 23-man squad
For Mbatha, the call-up marks what has been a sensational 12 months for a player who only joined the Soweto giants on a six-month loan at the start of last season from SuperSport United.
The 24-year-old proved to be key for the side and managed to seal a permanent move ahead of the 2024/25 season.
Speaking on SABC Sport shortly after his squad announcement, the head coach explained why he believes Mbatha will be key for Bafana for years to come.
"Honestly, we've been looking for a player like him for a few years," said Broos.
"He's [a] typical defensive midfielder. He's also a guy who can pass the ball, and refresh the game. I saw him in Pirates' last three games, he did very well. He was always there to have the ball, passes are good, his defending good. He is tall, which is also important.
"I was very pleased when Helman [Mkhalele, Bafana assistant coach] said to me: 'Do you know Mbatha? Maybe we have to look at him, maybe it will be something good for us'.
"So, I went to look a little bit more, concentrated on Pirates' games and I was convinced immediately.
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"This [height factor] is something regular in African football. I'm a little bit surprised that every team we play against, there are six, seven, eight guys with 1.85m, 1.90m.
"For a long time, we were the smallest team, but now we have big players. We have [Siyabonga] Ngezana, we have [Sphephelo] Sithole, we have now Mbatha.
"In the past, we were looking at those players, they are good players, but where is the height because it's important? Therefore, Thalente is the right player at the right place," added the national coach.
Bafana welcome Uganda at Orlando Stadium on 6 September, before traveling to Northeast Africa to take on South Sudan on 10 September.