CR Belouizdad striker Khanyisa Mayo has plans to earn a Bafana Bafana recall ahead of an important year for the national team. The 26-year-old embarked on a new chapter in his career when he left Cape Town City in August 2024 to join the Reds, who qualified for the CAF Champions League after finishing runners-up in the Algerian Ligue Professionnelle 1 last season. Mayo initially struggled to make an impact in Algiers, going without a goal in his first eight matches in all competitions before opening his account in the 2-1 defeat to Orlando Pirates on November 26. The SuperSport United youth product went on to score in his next two league outings and has regained his confidence; he hopes it will lead to bigger and better things in 2025. Mayo made his international debut in a friendly against Sierra Leone on 24 September 2022, but was overlooked for much of 2023 despite finishing as top scorer in the 2022-23 Betway Premiership season with 12 goals. He was excluded from Hugo Broos’ squad for the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations and only made two appearances in 2024, both friendlies against Andorra and Algeria. With the 2026 World Cup qualifying campaign set to conclude this year and Broos’ side set to compete at AFCON in December, Mayo is determined to put himself in the frame for a return to the international fold. “For me, it’s been a journey I have enjoyed,” he said. “As a footballer you have to live for moments like this, to enjoy it each and every time you get an opportunity [to play]. “So, I think with Bafana, I have been putting myself out there, raising my hand, knocking on the door. I have been asking questions to get back into the team. “We will see what happens because it’s a long journey, the season is still long but God willing, things will happen according to my plan.”