Seven months ago this weekend, Tumelo Mopeli settled down in front of the television at his home in Phiri, Soweto, to watch the World Cup final.
Like most of us, he was ready to be enchanted by the smooth passing of Spain, intrigued by the possibility that Holland might find the means to upset the favourites. But Mopedi was probably in a minority for his eagerness to closely study how the Netherlands would galvanise themselves in central midfield.
Like many South Africans of his generation, Mopeli is a big Teko Modise fan. He is also a great admirer of Mark van Bommel, the distinguished Dutch midfielder who has just joined AC Milan.
"I like Van Bommel for the way he bosses games from midfield," says Mopeli. "In modern football, that's a crucial position and I like the way he organises the teams he plays in from there."
So do many of the best managers: Van Bommel last month added Italy's most successful club to a list of employers who include Bayern Munich and Barcelona, with whom he won the Uefa Champions League.
It was to Van Bommel's previous club, PSV Eindhoven, that Mopeli travelled at the end of last month for a week-long trial that shows strong indications of leading to further interest from Europe in Orlando Pirates' SA under-17 international.
"We were very pleased with what we saw from him," reports Rini De Groot, PSV's head of scouting, "and we're exploring the possibility of his coming back for another period with us."
Mopeli, 17, was as impressed with the Dutch club, currently top of the Eredivisie. He trained with the under-19 squad, admits to having felt slightly daunted initially, but that he had matured significantly by the end of the experience.
"I think I learned a lot, not just about technical aspects," says Mopeli, "but also about the way you need to assert yourself in the position I play, as a defensive midfielder. It was demanding, they take their practice sessions very seriously there."
Dutch football, famously, takes youth development seriously. It has been the route several of the highest-achieving SA players of the last 15 years have travelled. Benni McCarthy, Aaron Mokoena and Steven Pienaar all played at Ajax Amsterdam. PSV, the club who brought talents as diverse as Brazil's Ronaldo and Korea's Park Ji-Sung to European football, enjoy as high a standing as a hothouse for emerging talents. Mopeli was training there with footballers who last May won the Dutch junior league.
They were all older than him, many two years his senior. "I felt I got better as the week went on. I made some adjustments and got an understanding of the movements they were looking for."
He was struck by the priority placed on possession. "You lose the ball, and immediately everybody is pressing to get it back."
Mopeli suspects he might return to Pirates practice sessions a little noisier on the field: "Over there, everybody's always talking on the pitch, letting team-mates know where they are and where to look for the ball. You've got to make yourself heard and in midfield, you've got to be a bit of a 'bully'." After two intense 11 versus 11 matches, Mopeli had released his inner Van Bommel. "By the end of the week I was at the top of my game."