Namibia captain Peter Shalulile was full of praise for his long-standing international teammate Deon Hotto ahead of their crucial 2023 Africa Cup of Nations clash against South Africa on Sunday.
The duo come a long way from the youth national team level to the AFCON finals, where they have become the only generation to appear at two editions.
Added to that, Hotto scored the goal against Tunisia which marked their first-ever win at the tournament – which Shalulile paid down to patience and hard work over the years.
“Everything is a process in life, you need to go through processes, you need to learn with certain players, the old players will fade out, you will get new coaches, but as long as you keep that circle that you came with from those years, it will pay off one day,” Shalulile told iDiski Times.
“Especially those who play outside [the country], they get more experience and with that experience, they bring it back to the field, back to us and then they teach [youngsters], and also what a goal from Deon Hotto, a brilliant goal for me – I thank him for that, on to the next one.”
The Sundowns attacking talisman plays alongside nine of the Bafana squad members but feels their knowledge of the opposition means nothing.
“Bafana is a good team, good players, we all know – but for us, we take it game by game, day by day and all we promise ourselves is to pitch up and give our best and by giving your best, we can’t [predict] the outcome,” he said.
“We’re not guaranteed a win even though you know and play with some guys, the national team is something else, you have to play against them, but come on Sunday – you never know, you never know what type of game we bring.
“We’re hoping for a result, hoping for the best for us and trying to make it out of the group stages, that’s our aim.”
The SADEC derby will take place on Sunday evening at Le Stade Amadou Gon Coulibaly (22h00).
