Orlando Pirates captain Innocent Maela has attempted to manage expectation around young team-mate, Relebohile Mofokeng, who’s being chased by Premier League teams.
The 19-year-old Mofokeng has been key to Pirates’ Premier Soccer League campaign this season – and recently had a trial with English Premier League team Wolverhampton Wanderers.
“First and foremost Mofokeng is a very humble boy – he’s very grounded. When you talk to him, he listens and he listens to understand. So, I think that quality will take him very far,” said Maela.
“In terms of him being a star, well, he’s far from that, I’ll be honest with you. There’s still a lot of work that he needs to put in. He still has to improve on a lot of things and he acknowledges that.
“Yes, the fans love him but he needs to stay close to reality and focus on his game – and just block all the outside noise.”
☠️ FT || @KaizerChiefs 0 – 1 @OrlandoPirates
🥅 20′ Makgopa
🎙 Midfielder | Vincent Pule
🎙 Midfielder | Relebohile Mofokeng⚫️⚪️🔴⭐️#Matchday #SowetoDerby#OrlandoPirates#OnceAlways pic.twitter.com/bfvloaHWQ8
— Orlando Pirates (@orlandopirates) November 11, 2023
Pirates are currently in seventh position on the 2023-24 PSL points table. They have won four, lost three and drawn three matches. Pirates will play Richards Bay on Saturday.
“If we can fix the matter of being inconsistent, then we will definitely get more wins and it will take us closer to challenging for the league and eventually winning the league,” added Maela.
