Former Mamelodi Sundowns captain Hlompho Kekana has explained what makes Jayden Adams a special midfielder with what he sees as unique qualities.
Adams has written one of the comeback stories of the season after struggling for form earlier in the term. But he managed to pick himself up to become a top performer again. For a player who was tipped to achieve a lot after making the Bafana Bafana side for the 2023 AFCON finals, his move to Sundowns midway through last season did not immediately meet expectations.
That saw the 24-year-old losing his place in the Bafana squad for the 2025 AFCON. However, Adams redeemed himself at the start of the year, becoming a regular starter for the Brazilians with 11 appearances across all competitions since January.
For a player who has not scored a goal or provided an assist during that period, Kekana is impressed by how Adams controls the Masandawana midfield. He is also back in the national team and is highly expected to go to the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
ADAMS’ UNIQUE QUALITY OBSERVED BY KEKANA
“As a midfielder in a big team, you have to be reliable, not only when we have the ball, but even when we don’t have the ball. You have to be a player who will always be there when we want to escape,” said Kekana on the Mameodi Sundowns Pitchside Podcast.
“One thing that sets him apart from the rest of the midfielders in the Premier Soccer League is that he knows how to use the ball. He passes well, he passes with the right pace, right technique. You must watch him. Clean passes all the time, safe passes all the time. When you don’t know your football very well, you will think he is just passing sideways, backwards or forward.”
Kekana goes on to explain what Adams offers to the Sundowns midfield. He draws similarities between the former Stellenbosch FC star and Rivaldo Coetzee, who had Pitso Mosimane and Rulani Mokwena waxing lyrical about.
“He gives us that control. We, as Sundowns, play with the ball a lot. You need that kind of player. Marcelo Allende when he comes, he is always on the ball, and you need such a player because the strikers will always give you the run,” Kekana went on.
“Sometimes they don’t get it. But it’s because once they break the line, you must come back to the position where they say, ‘We are ready now.’ But you cannot be busy with the ball. You need to pass and rotate the ball. That’s where Sundowns look good when they play like that. It’s control.
“To see that we are in control, you must look at those two-metre passes, four-metre passes, and Jayden brings that to the Mamelodi Sundowns line-up. He is not panicking. He is like a Riva [Coetzee] kind of player, where in build-up you can have him, when you advance in the midfield and consolidate, you can have him.”
THE ONE AREA ADAMS IS YET TO PROVE TO KEKANA
Kekana has, however, pointed to an aspect of the game he believes Adams needs to improve on.
“The one thing that he is yet to prove to me is in the final third. He needs to impose himself in that regard,” said Kekana.
“I don’t know whether he has the technique to pass the back of the net. But I know he can drive it from one side to the other. If you have that, you can have the drive to the keeper easily.”
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