Cyril Chibwe, 27, has rejected advances from Bafana Bafana coach Molefi Ntseki and has instead opted to play for Zambia, where his father was born.
The Polokwane City shot stopper recently grabbed headlines following Man of the Match performances in the Absa Premiership while standing in for George Chigova at the club, and as a result earned a surprise national team call-up.
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"But when we sent a letter through to his club we were informed that he would not be available as he has chosen to play for the country where his father is from," Ntseki revealed this week.
Chibwe was being called up to replace the injured Brandon Peterson ahead of Bafana's Nelson Mandela Challenge clash in Port Elizabeth on Sunday.
"We (did) our research and found that he is a South African, who was born in the North West, but unfortunately he will be joining the Zambian team in camp. That is why we then had Ricardo (Goss) coming in," the coach added.
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City were unbeaten in all three matches where Chibwe was between the goal posts, with the former Jomo Cosmos shot-shopper only conceding one goal in total.
"I think maybe he was approached long before we did. Maybe they made the necessary preparations for him to join the Zambian team. If he didn't have the Zambian passport they would have had to do it for him. But it's good for him," said Ntseki.
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