Apr 17, 2026, 08:40 AM ETOpen Extended Reactions
Although Mohau Nkota was in an environment at his previous club Orlando Pirates, which most players in Africa can only dream of, the Al-Ettifaq winger/full-back admitted that moving abroad was an ambition he still shared with most of his African peers.
South Africa has historically struggled to export its top talent, with many past and present local stars never playing overseas despite a highly professional Premier Soccer League (PSL). Nkota's generation appears to be breaking the mould.
"As Africans, not all of us want to stay in Africa and play in Africa," Bafana star Nkota told the Saudi Pro League's website.
"Most of us want to play overseas. For most of us, that's our wish, to move at an early age, to get to experience leagues in the other countries."
Apart from Nkota's own exploits in the Saudi Pro League, former Pirates teammate Mbekezeli Mbokazi has become a star at Chicago Fire FC, while Lyle Foster – a slightly older Orlando Pirates development product – is at Burnley in the Premier League.
Of the 10 players currently at overseas clubs in the last Bafana preliminary squad, all were aged 27 years old or younger.
Teko Modise and Itumeleng Khune were among the stars of the 2010 World Cup squad who never went abroad, while current senior Bafana Bafana stars such as Ronwen Williams, Khuliso Mudau, Themba Zwane and Teboho Mokoena have spent their whole careers at South African clubs.
Nkota – who is represented by Karabo Mathang-Tshabuse's P Management – admitted that despite his ambition to play abroad, it was difficult to leave Orlando Pirates.
"I was in the national team camp, and I was called by my agent [saying] there's a club that I'm going to move to in Saudi. And then I got a call from the [Orlando Pirates] chairman [Irvin Khoza] saying it's up to me whether I want to go or not. But I was happy about moving here," he recalled.
"As Africans, we want to move; we want to explore; we want to experience countries and play in those leagues. So that's what I did. I wanted to move; I wanted to go to other countries and play football."
"It wasn't easy. It was emotional, leaving the club where you grow up. They taught me a lot of things. My last week, it wasn't easy to go in and say goodbyes to the guys.
"It was very emotional for me, so I found the last day hard, that I will never see them again. To the Orlando Pirates fans, thank you. I wanted to leave; I wanted to play football. I want to go as far as I can."
Nkota is likely to see many of his former Pirates colleagues if he makes the squad for the FIFA World Cup. He believes that making the knockout rounds for the first time in South Africa's history from a group featuring Mexico, Czechia and South Korea is an achievable goal.
"We have a very good team; we have a lot of quality," Nkota said. "I believe it's achievable for us to go to the next round.
"Going to the World Cup, we want to make it a dream. We want people to remember what we left at the World Cup. We want to make sure that we leave a mark, make sure we play our best. And then we hope that something good will come."
