WATCH | Nasief Morris says current generation of SA players lacks ambition to play in Europe

Having played during a time where SA was exporting players to big European leagues for fun, retired Bafana Bafana centre-back Nasief Morris feels the current generation lacks ambition, hence the country now struggles to send players to big leagues abroad.

Morris, who's now serving as Shaun Bartlett's assistant at Cape Town Spurs in the second tier of SA football, played for a number of clubs in Greece like giants Panathinaikos. The now 41-year-old also represented Racing Santander in Spanish La Liga.

"The mentality of the players [isn't good]. Currently, everybody is comfortable in South Africa. Players nowadays don't want to set their goals higher,'' Morris said on the sidelines of the Nedbank Cup last 32 draw, where his Spurs were drawn against fellow Motsepe Foundation side Baroka in Sandton on Thursday night.

"I mean, if I look back at our generation, we  used to aim for big things and we didn't want to play in SA...we wanted to play in Europe against the best in the world. Those were dreams we put for ourselves  and we achieved those dreams. Nowadays there's too much comfortability."

The erstwhile Bafana star also accused today's crop of players of not wanting to test themselves against the crema de la crème of world football, making reference to how he started out in Greece before moving to Spain.

"They [today's generation] don't want to challenge themselves and don't want to put themselves in a shopping window, whether it's a simple small country in Europe, where you put yourself in the window and you can be exposed and get a chance to a bigger club. Like, I mean, I played in Greece for a small team and I got snatched by one of the big teams in Greece and I ended up in La Liga [in Spain] after that, so it's all about what you want and do for yourself at the end of the day,'' Morris explained.

"You are earning a couple of hundred thousand [of rand] and you just think you don't need to go for more. Sometimes the amount of salary you can get here is the same as what you can get in small European leagues but it's about challenging yourself to be seen by the rest of Europe."