Selection headache for Amajita coach

South African Under-20 men’s team coach Thabo Senong says continuity is key when it comes to selecting his final 21 players that will take part at the Fifa Under-20 World Cup in Korea, but admits that it will be a very difficult task for him.

The Amajita coach is, however, confident that he will choose the best team that will compete at the global event, saying there might be some changes from the squad that competed at the Under-20 Afcon in Zambia.

“Continuity is key. We have been with most of these players for the last 12 months or so, and when we select the final team we need not start from scratch. Most of them have been playing together for some time and I can confirm now that we are facing a huge challenge to select the 21 players needed for the tournament,” Senong told the Safa website.

“At the same time, I believe we have a squad that can compete. We are still monitoring some local as well as overseas-based players because the door is not yet closed on anyone, and you may find a surprise.”

Amajita were drawn alongside Japan, Italy and Uruguay in Group D and Senong is confident that the team can go far in the tournament.

“I strongly believe we have the potential to go far in the World Cup, and I hope the players have enough confidence in themselves to believe it. We will take it day by day and focus on each game as it comes. The boys have really grown tactically and mentally in the past year and we would like to make this a World Cup to remember. The intention is to be in South Korea two weeks before the start of the tournament so we can adapt to the conditions and time zones as quickly as possible,” added Senong.

The tournament starts on May 20 and will run till June 11 .