Orlando Pirates captain Innocent Maela has shared his thoughts on the remarkable rise of Relebohile Mofokeng and Mohau Nkota at the Soweto giants.
In recent weeks, SA football has been captivated by the emergence of Mohau Nkota, a promising talent who has quickly made a name for himself with impressive performances.
Nkota [20] joins Relebohile Mofokeng as another exciting young player who is making waves in the game in the colours of Pirates.
The exciting duo were crucial for the Buccaneers when they won their opening CAF Champions League match against CR Belouizdad in the group stages on Tuesday. Pirates beat Belouizdad 2-1 away from home with two brilliant goals from Nkota, while South African striker Khanyisa Mayo netted for the Algerian side.
In a match where Nkota scored two goals, Mofokeng [20] provided two assists to ensure that Pirates walked away with maximum points.
Mohau Nkota, who was promoted from Pirates’ DStv Diski Challenge [DDC] side towards the end of last season, has had an impressive start to the 2024/25 season. So far this season, the left-footed attacker has scored four goals in seven matches across all competitions for Bucs.
His first top-flight goal came in Pirates’ 2-1 win against AmaZulu FC in the Betway Premiership at Orlando Stadium in Soweto last month.
Meanwhile, Mofokeng has established himself as a fan-favourite at Pirates with his goal-scoring abilities and skills to eliminate defenders. The School of Excellence product and Bafana Bafana international has featured in 16 matches in all competitions this season, scored four goals and provided seven assists.
INNOCENT MAELA PRAISES RELEBOHILE MOFOKENG AND MOHAU NKOTA’S RISE
Maela has commended the contributions of Mofokeng and Nkota, emphasising the importance of Pirates’ youth development system in nurturing such talented players.
“I think a lot of credit needs to go to the academies and the coaches they’ve worked with,” said Maela. “Also as an individual, we need to give credit to the guys [Mofokeng and Nkota], not only the youngsters but everyone, the humility that we have in the squad is unbelievable. It helps us a lot to grasp new information and new tactics and for the players to be coachable.
“We believe that if we train well and work hard, then we do enough to deserve to play. We wish them the best of luck, and they should keep going, keep their feet on the ground, and keep being humble to get better.
“A lot of credit needs to go to the academy they come from and the coaches they worked with, and for them to be able to grab information and be coachable, we wish they can keep going and keep improving.”
RELATED STORY: Thabo Rakhale’s words of wisdom for Orlando Pirates trio
