From a squatter camp to Scotland…Aphelele Teto’s rags to fame tale
When Carlos Mtshamba met Aphelele Teto, it only took five minutes to realise that he had a star on his hands. Mtshamba, then a bright-eyed developmental coach, had established his academy, Carlos Soccer Youth Development, a few years before this encounter with Teto.
As is the case in such burgeoning junior football development institutions, it was not unusual for people to bring prospective gems they thought could be polished up by Mtshamba and his team.
Not every boy who walked onto the football field was a hit. The abilities of some would have been overestimated by guardians or mentors who may not have had an eye to realise the limits of youngsters under their tutelage.
Teto, however, was different. Within a few minutes of stepping on that pitch, Mtshamba knew that he had just unearthed a rough diamond from the unlikeliest sources.
“We had trials, and people would just bring the boys randomly to a training session to say, ‘just have a look at this boy’. He was there training with the Academy. It took me only five minutes to say, “This is the future,” Mtshamba tells FARPost.
From the onset, Mtshamba felt that Teto’s talent was obvious. Despite being noticeably shorter than the other boys, he seemed to glide past them, skinning defenders with sheer pace and skill. Oddly, for one so young, he was also not shy of to have a pop at goal. After 10 minutes of relentless attack from the pint-sized trialist, Mtshamba felt that he had found the cornerstone from which to build his academy.
FANCY FOOTBALL PITCHES WERE THE LAST THING ON TETO’S MIND
“His acceleration was impressive. That was the first thing that you would notice. I didn’t expect that from a boy who was that short. He would not hesitate to take on a defender. His first touch was good. He would go behind the defender, cross, or shoot,” the coach explains.
“It was not easy to take the ball from his feet. Forget. That’s what impressed me about him. He never played single passes. In that short space of five minutes, all these balls, he was going forward. And I think he scored two goals in 10 minutes.”
Despite his obvious raw gifts, Mtshamba realised that Teto still needed polishing up. Sure, he could take on a man, shoot, and score, but he still needed education on some of the game’s more intricate aspects. He just needed to be taught how and when to pass, when to take players on, because sometimes he would overdo it.
“My responsibility as a development coach was to polish this rough diamond,” Mtshamba adds.
Perhaps the lack of refinement in Teto’s game was down to an impoverished upbringing that had not brought him close to an academy’s doors in his earlier years. In fact, so dire was his situation that one could not even reach the dwelling that Teto called home by road. Fancy football training pitches were the last thing on his community’s collective mind. In Teto, Mtshamba, who grew up under pretty similar conditions, had found a kindred spirit that he felt he was duty-bound to nurture to full blossom.
ON THE CUSP OF A MOVE TO LIVINGSTON FC
“I met his mother. They were staying in a squatter camp. His story was similar to mine. I also grew up in a shack. So it was nothing shocking to me. I told him that it was up to us to take our parents out of that difficult situation, which is what he did,” he explains.
From the moment that he signed him, Mtshamba took on the role of a father figure for Teto. With a less-than-ideal situation at home, he knew he had to take care of the youngster, looking after his needs both on and off the field.
Teto, who earned his first Bafana Bafana call-up earlier this year, has not forgotten that first fateful meeting with Mtshamba. After making the natural progression from the Bidvest Wits juniors and TS Galaxy, he is now on the cusp of move to the Scottish topflight, where he will turn out for West Lothian side Livingstone FC.
He is now rightfully regarded as one of the brightest talents in Mzansi. However, before he left the East London-based academy, he still had a lot to prove to some that might have had doubts about his precocious talent.
“In 2017, we played Bidvest Wits and SuperSport United. It took Kaizer Chiefs development coach Dillon Sheppard 15 minutes to say he wants Teto. He was coaching the Under-17s at Wits. SuperSport invited Teto for a trial but then Bidvest Wits were just taking him without a trial. He played only a few games at U-17 at first. They pushed him to the under-19s in the same year,” recalls Mtshamba, who doubles up as Chippa United DDC coach.
As he opens a new chapter in his life, his mentor believes that the Scottish game will further refine his erstwhile protégé.
WILLING TO WAIT FOR TETO
“I think with proper guidance in Scotland, he will be great. Just seeing how Livingston FC have treated him makes me happy. He needed a few international caps to reapply for his visa,” Mtshamba says.
In his new home in West Lothian, Teto is clearly coveted, with his new gaffer David Martindale telling the club’s website that they are willing to wait for Teto to sort out his visa issues because of how highly they regard him.
“He is a fantastic young talent. He really is a special talent that is so different from any other 20-year-old I have coached or seen previously in Scotland,” Martindale told the club’s website.
Not all faith that academy coaches invest in young players pays off, and although he felt that he had something special on his hands when he first saw Teto, he could not have known how crucial he would be to the progress of his academy. As his star continues to rise, Teto’s exploits are also opening doors for the academy.
“Because of the boy I’m part of the family of Livingston Football Club where I can interact with anyone from the kitchen to the groundsman. So it’s a family environment. He’s something special. from the kitchen to the groundsman,” says Carlos Academy founder.
“Teto’s move to Scotland has opened a door for us. We have a number of players going to Europe to get exposure. It’ll be important for them.”
With Teto shining the light for those behind him, his youth coach believes that his academy, which houses 80 boys from Under 11, 13, 15, 17 and 19 is ready to deliver even more ready-made stars from his humble grounds in East London to Europe.
CARLOS ACADEMY AIMS TO HAVE MORE STARS OVERSEAS
“I want to have more stars based overseas coming out of this academy. I wish we can get more support from the private sector, the government to take these kids to another level because now we’ve got a great way now to get them to Europe. In some cases, we don’t have to take them via the PSL. We’ve got a direct link to take them to Europe.
“Last year, we took four boys to spend time with Livingston Football Club. We were that side for 10 days and they also got a chance to have a day of training with the senior team. We have an agreement with the club that every year we have to bring five boys to Scotland for 10 days, just to come and see how things are done. So on a yearly basis, I will keep on sending players to Scotland for assessment and experience at under-18.”
After over a decade, Teto’s triumphs have proved ample vindication of Mtshamba’s dream, which ironically began when he was watching an underdeveloped senior player during a tournament.
“The birth of Carlos Academy came 11 years ago. I happened to watched a 23-year-old striker who was playing for Mthatha Bush Bucks. He was scoring so many goals. But I felt his game lacked elements you can only develop at youth level. That showed me the importance of development. In 2014, I launched the academy. Thabo September, William Shongwe and Sibusiso Zuma were there. It was a schools tournament. The kids I selected formed the first team of Carlos Academy,” he says.
INSPIRED BY PITSO MOSIMANE
Inspired by Pitso Mosimane, Carlos decided to try his hand at coaching after his own football career. This was at the twilight of his career that took him to FC Fortune, Arcadia Shepherds, OR Tambo Jomo Cosmos, Bloemfontein Celtic and Santos in the NFD.
“My journey for coaching started at OR Tambo Cosmos when I was coaching in the Vodacom League.
“I had been fortunate to train under Pitso Mosimane briefly at SuperSport. That’s where I fell in love with Pitso’s philosophy. I loved his attention to detail, how he had control of the team and how he ran things. It was a trial but I got inspired by Pitso. I loved how he instilled discipline in his team, and the clear communication,” he says.
As a new season beckons, Mtshamba will watch his one-time protégé, Teto, take on some of Scotland’s giants in one of Europe’s most passionate leagues. For him, the youngster’s rise is the crowning glory of an academy that he hopes to see blossom even further. For Teto, the new season is another giant step in a career that looks as if it is destined for great heights.
“I’m looking forward to moving to Scotland to start my career overseas,” says Teto. “It’ll change my life and that of my family. I want to see other academy boys make strides and end up in Europe like me. Coach Carlos has become like a father to me. It’s the sacrifices he’s made for me over the years and just sticking with me through everything.”
RELATED STORY: Aphelele Teto gets closer to Scottish dream following CHAN chance