National under17 skipper Nelson Maluleke is one of the players who will be giving it his all over the next few months. The attacking midfielder states ex-FC Barcelona midfielder Xavi Hernandez as his favourite player and his lifetime dream of playing for and captaining Bafana Bafana.

“I believe in never giving up – to keep playing and trying, to train harder and longer. I will give it my all at the trials.”

Other players are Safwan Hendriks and Jake Aresti who both participate in the under15 squad.

Safwan is an up and coming prospect who plays on the right-wing and was part of the under17 team which reached the finals of the 2015 Engen Cup where they finished as runners-up after losing to Ajax Cape Town.  At 15, Hendriks is playing in the under17 SuperSport United team and is excited at the opportunity of getting exposure at the Holland side and learn the Dutch style of play.

Fellow teammate Aresti is an attacking midfielder who is making his presence noticed. He has also represented the SuperSport under17 team and formed part of the Engen Cup squad.

“I still cannot believe that I will be going overseas on a two week trial. I’m living my dream and I hope that I can really shine when I play in Holland.”

Academy manager, Giancarlo Ballossini explains what this means for both the club as well as the youngsters.

“This is pivotal in the next stage of development. Phumelela help us scout and develop these players now it’s up to us to expose them onto the world’s leading stages.

Overseas travel serves both an educational purpose as well as the players can assess for themselves the level of opposition and where they need to be and what deficiencies to work on. This will be the first of many overseas tours for Academy players and acts as a motivation for other academy players as well.”