Former Kaizer Chiefs and Bafana Bafana striker Katlego Mphela says he vividly recalls his worst ever game as a footballer.
‘Killer’, as he is affectionately known, was one of the best strikers the country has produced.
Mphela had played for Jomo Cosmos, Strasbourg, SuperSport United and Mamelodi Sundowns before joining Chiefs in 2014. He also featured at Royal Eagles before hanging up his boots in 2019, but insisted it was his debut at Chiefs that still gives him headaches.
“Yoh, I have had worse games, but I’ll say my first start at Kaizer Chiefs, I was in the starting 11, we played against Platinum Stars in Rustenburg,” he told iDiski Times journalist Lethabo Kganyago in edition 44.
“I didn’t recognize myself there, like everything was not going my way, I was like a school boy just learning to play football. I think it was because of the pressure and the expectation then.
“When I left Sundowns I wasn’t playing enough and people expected to see the same Katlego who was playing for Sundowns to do the same things at Kaizer Chiefs, but it was difficult.”
The 36-year-old retired player is also concerned about the lack of good strikers in the country, saying there is no proper development to produce dangerous goal-poachers.
“Personally I think there are many things that affect strikers, firstly development is not proper. There has to be a focus on strikers just as there is focus on goalkeepers, two sensitive positions, goalkeepers need to win you games they say, and strikers they get you points, so both ends are important.
“And I think strikers themselves need to take it upon themselves to do extra trainings because the coaches they do not have enough time. They also need to know their jobs, I mean you can’t be a striker and be all over the pitch, but maybe we shouldn’t judge them, maybe that’s what is asked of them by their coaches.
“But coaches do need to look at this, put an extra hour on the strikers, if necessary, because they get paid for that, you can’t be paid to just train two hours a day. Some people work 9-5 they earn less or not even a quarter of what you are earning.”
Story by Lethabo Kganyago (@ngwanamogoto).
