Why Nigeria stars are Europe’s hot picks over South Africans – Former Bafana Bafana coach

Former Bafana Bafana coach Pitso Mosimane has discussed why European clubs prefer signing Nigerian players over South Africans, Soccernet.ng reports.

Mosimane, a highly successful coach in Africa, commented on the issue following a challenging season for Burnley's Lyle Foster. The 23-year-old South African forward made only 26 appearances in the Premier League.

Historically, South African players, like those in the victorious 1996 Africa Cup of Nations squad, had a significant impact in England.

Recently, however, top South African players such as Percy Tau have not matched those achievements, leading to hesitation among European clubs to sign players from the region.

In contrast, Nigerian players are excelling in Europe. Many Super Eagles players are in top European leagues, with stars like Napoli's Victor Osimhen, Atalanta's Ademola Lookman, and Bayer Leverkusen's Victor Boniface performing well.

In a recent interview, Mosimane highlighted the need for South African players to meet the specific demands of European clubs.

He mentioned John Barnes's observation that while South Africa has talented players, they often lack the type needed for the English Premier League. West African players, however, meet those requirements.

“Look, it is a concern for me and I was banking on Lyle Foster and now look what happened (Burnley have been relegated to the Championship). I was banking on Percy in the Premier League, the same way (Steven) Pienaar, Benni McCarthy, and Shaun Bartlett represented us, but we don’t have anybody now and it’s not nice,” Mosimane said as per The Citizen.

“We need to have the right product and the right players. Did you hear what John Barnes said about South African players? He said that we have players but we don’t easily have the right type of player for the English Premier League but West Africa has that type of player for the Premier League.”

Mosimane pointed out that Nigerian players match the market demands, which is why they succeed at clubs like AC Milan and Napoli.

“Watch the Nigeria team play South Africa, where is that flair or whatever? But those guys are playing for AC Milan and Napoli. Why is that?

“It’s because you must have the right product for the right market. Maybe we have the right product for the kasi flavour which is good. I don’t think there’s anybody who can beat us if there was a football tournament about that.

“We have the technique and skills but if you want the product to play at the World Cup maybe it’s (Evidence) Makgopa. Maybe he’s that kind of a player.”

Despite interest from European clubs in players like Teboho Mokoena and Khuliso Mudau, no transfers have materialised.

Meanwhile, Nigerian strikers such as Victor Boniface, Victor Osimhen, and Ademola Lookman are attracting attention from major European clubs like Juventus, Bayern Munich, Chelsea, and Manchester United.