Club Brugge starlet Shandre Campbell has joined the SA men’s U20 national team camp in Pretoria ahead of coach Raymond Mdaka’s final squad announcement for the U20 Fifa World Cup in Chile later in September.
The reigning U20 Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) champions have been drawn in Group E alongside France, the USA, and debutants New Caledonia.
Campbell missed the Afcon in Egypt in April after his club cited his importance in the first team, as they were at a crucial stage of the season in the Belgian Pro League last season.
The 19-year-old skilful and talented winger is expected to make the final squad alongside regulars Tylon Smith, Mfundo Vilakazi, Fletcher Smythe-Lowe, Langelihle Phili, Neo Rapoo, and Kutlwano Letlhaku, just to name a few.
Clear of injuries
“This is the first day [on Tuesday] of our camp, and everything is going well so far. We had our first session, and all players were clear of injuries, looking positive and sharp,” Mdaka told Safa media on Tuesday.
“It is just a few of them that still need some conditioning, but we are happy to say that we seem like we are picking up from where we left off in the Afcon, and everything is positive so far.
“We still have a couple of sessions lined up and two friendly matches, one on Thursday and another on Sunday against Gomora United, just to test the team before we finalise the squad in the coming days.”
Ready for World Cup
Mdaka continued: “But by the look of things and the programmes we have and where we are now, we look far better and closer to being ready for the World Cup,” Mdaka added.
Mdaka, however, will once again be without Orlando Pirates defender Mbekezeli Mbokazi, who was not included in the preliminary squad, as he is currently with Bafana Bafana preparing for the upcoming 2026 Fifa World Cup qualifiers against Lesotho and Nigeria.
Some of the exciting and new faces in Mdaka’s provisional squad include Pirates player Simphiwe Selepe, Siviwe Magidigidi of Siwelele FC, Magesi FC’s Thato Mpati, and Kaizer Chiefs’ new signing Luke Baartman.
