Kaizer Chiefs star Gaston Sirino, with a past at Mamelodi Sundowns, has highlighted a key difference he perceives between the two South African football giants.
After parting ways with the Brazilians, Sirino joined Chiefs as a free agent at the start of the 2024/25 Betway Premiership season.
Before leaving Sundowns, Sirino struggled to hold a regular place in the starting line-up under the then-head coach Rulani Mokwena. The highly-rated winger spent seven seasons with Sundowns after signing in January 2018 from Bolivian side Club Bolivar.
In his successful stint with Downs, Sirino featured in over 200 appearances across all competitions, scored 41 goals and provided 44 assists.
The Uruguan international won a handful of major trophies with Masandawana, including seven league titles and the African Football League [AFL].
Having joined the Glamour Boys as a marquee off-season acquisition, he aims to be instrumental in the club’s resurgence to its former glory.
So far, the 34-year-old has featured in 23 matches across all competitions for Chiefs, contributing three goals and six assists.
WHAT SIRINO SAID ABOUT THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN CHIEFS AND SUNDOWNS
Drawing on his experiences within both the Sundowns and Chiefs camps, Sirino has identified the contrasting squad depth as a key difference between the two rivals.
“I think here [at Chiefs], there aren’t too many players, but at Sundowns, there are many good players,” Sirino said at Naturena on Monday. “There is also too much quality at Sundowns.
“When there are players who are injured at Chiefs, you can see that the team is short. You can see when [Inacio] Miguel got injured, we had Bradley Cross playing centre-back.
“So at Sundowns, there are too many players in every position, but the quality here at Chiefs is also good,” the attacking midfielder added.
Chiefs are preparing to face Orlando Pirates in the highly-anticipated Nedbank Cup final at the Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban on the 10th of May. Kickoff is at 15:30.
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