In an emotional video captured by Metro FM on Thursday, former Mamelodi Sundowns defender Ramahlwe Mphahlele has revealed why he surprisingly left the club despite achieving such great success at Chloorkop.
The 36-year-old called time on his 20-yearlong successful and controversy-free football career, making the announcement on @SNAWA_MetroFmSA.
A fighter on the field of play and father, and son off the pitch, the former South African national U20 & U23 captain tried to fight back tears but couldn’t as he listened to video messages of his mother Ramatsobana Moshopiadi Mphahlele and his two kids Ofentse and Reitumetse.
His decision to leave Masandawana was purely down to liberating his family he admitted and joining Kaizer Chiefs afforded him the opportunity to be able to do that.
“A lot of people don’t know the reason I left Sundowns, my sister wanted to go to varsity. She didn’t have money,” he said.
“I wasn’t making that much. My brother was finishing [high school], he wanted to go to university, so for me I wanted to liberate my people hence I made certain decisions in life.
“Mom didn’t have a house and I just wanted to see them well off. My brother finished his BCom, my sister is an electrical engineer. My heart is pure.
“I didn’t make decisions for me. I made them so that my people can have a better life because if I didn’t give them a better life, no one was going to give them a better life.
“Mom wasn’t working, Dad wasn’t supporting us so I was the only option. From where I’m from, there’s not too many options.
“I come from nothing and some decisions I made, I was scared that if I don’t liberate my family and take them to school then they’ll forever be my burden.
“So, but I needed to make certain decisions for them [siblings] to go to school.
“And when I left Sundowns then I could afford to take them to school.”
Mphahlele turned out for six teams in the Betway Premiership including the CAF Champions League holders having also plied his trade for Moroka Swallows, University of Pretoria, Kaizer Chiefs, AmaZulu and ORBIT College.
He also represented South Africa’s senior national team on 24 occasions with a single goal between 2016 and 2025.
His trophy cabinet boasts Swallows’ 2009 Nedbank Cup-winning side, back-to-back league titles with Sundowns in the 2013/14 and 2015/16 as well as the Nedbank Cup and CAFCL title in 2015/16.
He featured in the Amakhosi side that reached the 2021 CAF Champions League final, losing 3-0 to Pitso Mosimane’s Al Ahly at the time.
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