Kaizer Chiefs winger Mduduzi Shabalala hopes he has made a good impression at Villarreal after spending a week with the club on trial.
The 17-year-old trained with the Yellow Submarine's reserve team, which campaigns in the third tier of the Spanish football, Primera Division RFEF – Group Two, during his time in Spain.
Shabalala, who is yet to make his official debut for Chiefs' first team, reflected on his time with coach Miguel Alvarez's side.
“I trained with their [Villarreal’s] second team. It was good, I performed well and they loved me," Shabalala told Diski Times.
"I hope they will give me a chance one day. It was also so good to see people we usually see on TV."
Villarreal have several African players in their first team, namely Nigeria's Samuel Chukwueze, Ivory Coast captain Serge Aurier, Senegal's striker Boulaye Dia and Algeria's defender Aissa Mandi.
The former South Africa under-17 international has been in top form for Amakhosi's reserve team in the DStv Diski Challenge - scoring 13 goals this season.
Having been part of the matchday squad for Chiefs' PSL clash with Sekhukhune United in December last, Shabalala feels he is ready for the first-team action.
“I have 13 goals in the Diski Challenge and to be honest things haven’t gone well this season, we can only hope to do better in the coming season,” he added.
“I might think I’m ready [for the first team] but the coaches might have a different opinion, but if I’m given a chance I will play and prove myself.”
Chiefs' first-team interim coach Arthur Zwane is known to be a big fan of the club's academy graduates and it remains to be seen whether he will hand Shabalala his PSL debut this term.
The Soweto giants will take on Sekhukhune on Saturday in their penultimate league game of the current season before they square off with their Soweto rivals Swallows FC on May 21.