Orlando Pirates star Monnapule Saleng has been given a lifeline after being named in the Bafana Bafana squad for the 2024 African Nations Championships (CHAN) qualifiers.
South Africa will face Egypt in a two-legged clash on Friday, 28 February, with the return match on Sunday, 9 March and assistant coach Helman Mkhalele has named a 22-man squad that includes Saleng.
It means the winger will get an opportunity to play after being frozen from the squad at Pirates for months for reasons that are yet to be made public.
Saleng has not played for Pirates since the start of November 2024, with both the club and coach Jose Riveiro staying mum over his whereabouts, but even with that, Mkhalele still saw it fit to include him in the team for the CHAN qualifiers.
Who else has made the squad?
Another notable inclusion is former Pirates defender Bongani Sam, now at Kaizer Chiefs, but who has not played a minute of competitive football this term, since crossing over in the off-season.
Like Saleng, it is still not known why coach Nasreddine Nabi has not been using the left-back, even after recovering from an injury late last year, but he will get a chance to showcase his talents in the CHAN qualifiers.
Others are Chiefs’ DStv Diski Challenge captain Aden McCarthy, Siphamandla Gumede of Orlando Pirates and Mamelodi Sundowns’ third-choice Jody February and his club-mates Kutlwano Letlhaku, Neo Maema and Terrence Mashego.
If they overcome the Pharaohs, South Africa will face either Comoros or Malawi in the final round of the qualifiers for a place at the tournament set to be held in Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania from August 2-30.
