South Africa's captain Lucas Radebe says he and his team are ready for the toughest Cup of Nations yet.

Speaking at the Bafana Bafana training camp in the hot and dry city of Mafeking, Radebe said that African football has improved a lot in the past few years.

And he says that with all the experienced European-based players taking part, there will be no weak teams.

"This will be the hard one because every team has improved through the years and especially we've got Nigeria," the 31-year-old defender told the BBC.

The core of South Africa's squad, including Radebe himself, have already tasted Nations Cup success, when they took the title in 1996.

The team then lost in the final two years ago to Egypt.

Radebe, who grew up in Soweto, says the experiences of himself and team-mates such as Mark Fish (Bolton Wanderers) and Quinton Fortune (Manchester United) have made them determined to go all the way again.

"I think we've got a good chance. We've got great players who are hungry for success ... we want to be there again. We want to keep that momentum going." the Leeds United captain said.

And reflecting on the finals overall, Radebe knows that it will be a great competition, and he says he hopes the world sees some great football.

South Africa are playing their three group games in Kumasi, in Ghana and are expected to get through against Algeria, Democratic Republic of Congo and Gabon.