As Percy Tau's future at Al Ahly remains in the balance, his career at Bafana Bafana could also be in jeopardy after Hugo Broos' bold decision seemingly paid off.
At least before the Africa Cup of Nations, Tau was arguably Bafana's most important and most valuable player.
However, after 'The Lion of Judah' had a lacklustre showing at the AFCON tournament, despite South Africa finishing third, his status in the team diminished.
It was inconceivable that Bafana would play qualifiers for a major tournament without Tau, unless due to an injury but the former Brighton and Hove Albion forward has not been called up to the national team since the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers in June.
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The 30-year-old played 79 minutes in a 1-1 draw against Nigeria away and his last match he watched on the bench as Bafana thrashed Zimbabwe 3-1 in Free State in back-to-back World Cup qualifiers.
Since then, there has been back and forth regarding who to trust between Broos and Tau, as they have been contradicting each other on why the diminutive left-footed attacker has not been getting call ups.
But the Belgian initially said he was giving Tau a break due to criticism he has received but the former Mamelodi Sundowns star refuted those claims in an interview on Metro FM.
The 72-year-old, during the AFCON qualifiers stated, however that Tau is no longer playing at Al Ahly and perhaps he would have a better chance of being called up again if he were to find a different club or plays regularly again.
Since Tau has been dropped from Bafana, Broos' charges are yet to lose a game, after qualifying for the continental biennial tournament unbeaten and also completed the FIFA Series competition without losing, the other two internationals in March that the 30-year-old missed after the AFCON tournament.
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After South Africa rounded off their AFCON qualifying campaign with an impressive 3-0 win over South Sudan, former Kaizer Chiefs midfielder Jabu Mahlangu credited Broos for how the national team does no longer depend on individuals.
"Broos is brave, we didn't have such a database before. It's not like we have rejected Tau or we don't love him, we love him but we don't miss easily," Mahlangu said on SABC Sport TV.
"Because the new guys Broos brought in raised up their hand and they are taking us forward. I'm just happy that when he takes out one and brings another, the team's identity and tempo remains the same," Mahlangu added.
With his contract running out in 2025, there are reports that Al Ahly are not keen to offer Tau a renewal and that has resulted in the Witbank native losing his spot in the regular line-up after he played a combined 24 minutes in three league matches off the bench and was also afforded only 14 minutes in the CAF Champions League group stage opener, in a 4-2 win over Stade d'Abidjan on Tuesday.
