South Africa head coach Pitso Mosimane has recalled Lyle Foster, the Burnley striker on loan at Houston Dynamo, for the first time under his tenure. He has also challenged the forward to rediscover the level he had before his move to the United Kingdom.
Pitso Mosimane has decided to extend an olive branch to Lyle Foster. The South Africa head coach has recalled the 25-year-old striker for the first time since taking charge of the Bafana Bafana. The decision was made official on Monday 9 November 2026, as the squad began preparations at Wits Stadium.
But this return is not a simple gift. Mosimane, quoted by IOL, has set his conditions: Foster must prove he has rediscovered the hunger and the level he had before his move to the United Kingdom. A recall under scrutiny, then, for a player who had missed the previous camp.
A return with conditions
The South Africa head coach was direct. “He is still a long way from his peak since he left for the United Kingdom, but we have to give him a chance to prove he is back. I need to see that hunger, and I can only see it in training and in matches,” Mosimane said, according to IOL.
It is a message that sounds like a warning for the striker. He will therefore have to prove himself in training and in the Bafana Bafana’s upcoming matches.
The memory of important goals
Mosimane has not forgotten what Foster has brought in the past, however. “He is a very good striker, we cannot forget the goals he scored for the Bafana in World Cup qualifying and at previous AFCONs. But we know that in football, today’s price is not tomorrow’s, as in business, and we have to give him a chance,” he added, again according to IOL.
Foster’s recall is part of a policy of second chances favoured by the coach. He also cited Tshepang Moremi and Thalente Mbatha, who are also in the squad for 2026 World Cup qualifying and were absent from the first camp. “It is all in his hands now, and I just have to be consistent in this approach with players like Tshepang Moremi and Thalente Mbatha, who perhaps missed the first camp for one reason or another,” Mosimane said.
Kenya in their sights
The Bafana Bafana’s next fixture is against Kenya in the upcoming international window. It is an opportunity for Foster to show on the pitch that he has rediscovered the level he had before his move to the United Kingdom.
Meanwhile, the squad is continuing its preparations at Wits Stadium, where Mosimane made these comments.