25 April 2018 – Giovanni Lindokuhle Raphael Idi is humbled by the experience he has received after he was called up to the training and selection camp of the Burger King sponsored South African Men’s U20 National Team, ahead of their 2019 CAF U20 African Cup of Nations qualifiers against Mozambique next month.
Idi, who is a Goalkeeper for the University of Pretoria believes that forming a part of the Amajita team is a must for his personal goals and that will give him an edge as he tries to break into his senior team at club level.
“The past 10 days have been unbelievable for me and I still can’t believe that I have the opportunity to make the final squad and represent my country. We have learnt so much about what it is to be a national team player and I want a taste of that, especially after hearing about what the previous generation has achieved with qualifying for the FIFA U20 World Cup” said Idi.
“I have learnt so much in this training camp that I want to take back to my club. I have learnt a bit more about my strengths and weaknesses and what I need to do to grow as a player. Working with Thabo Senong and the legendary Helman Mkhalele has been a mind blowing experience. Their knowledge of the game and their approach towards us as players is unbelievable” added Idi.
Idi will be hoping to receive another call up when Amajita go back into camp to continue preparing for their first international match of the year, when they take on Mozambique.
The first leg will be away with the actual date yet to be confirmed between the weekend of 11 and 13 May.