AmaZulu FC head coach Arthur Zwane has issued a blunt wake-up call to his squad, warning that depending solely on Thandolwenkosi Ngwenya for goals is a recipe for disaster.
Zwane’s charges have enjoyed a solid start to the campaign—registering two wins, one draw, and a single defeat. That solitary setback, however, was a heavy 5-2 loss to Mamelodi Sundowns at Loftus Versfeld on Wednesday, where a Brayan León brace alongside goals from Teboho Mokoena, Tashreeq Matthews, and Bennet Mokoena put Usuthu to the sword.
Ngwenya grabbed both goals for Usuthu, taking his tally to five goals in four Betway Premiership matches. He also has two in the MTN8, leaving him with seven in all competitions and right at the top of the Golden Boot race.
But Zwane isn’t celebrating, saying the team’s dependence on the Zimbabwean star could become a major problem.
Speaking after the loss at Loftus, Zwane stressed the urgency of diversifying Usuthu’s attack while highlighting the physical toll already showing on their main man.
‘OTHERS ALSO NEED TO TAKE RESPONSIBILITY’ – ARTHUR ZWANE
“It’s good to see him scoring goals. The only concern is that it can’t be only him who scores for us. Others also need to take responsibility. You can’t rely on him, because if he gets injured again, then we’re going to have a problem,” said Zwane.
“We’re just hoping that Thando will be available for selection all the time. You must have seen that towards the end of the game [against Sundowns], he started cramping, and that was a warning sign for us.
“Sometimes you want to take him out, but you look at who can give you goals. We don’t have another prolific striker like him at the moment. We do have others, but they’re still coming back because they missed pre-season.”
Ngwenya missed two and a half months last campaign with injury, a period that derailed AmaZulu’s season, and Zwane is desperate to avoid a repeat.
“There’s no doubt about it. Even last season, if you check, if he had not got the injury, I think he was going to help us big time. Unfortunately, he missed about two and a half months of the season when we needed him the most,” Zwane added.
“And he was already on six goals. He also had a lot of one-on-ones earlier on in the season that he didn’t take. I even said to them last season, before he got injured, he could have easily been on 12, if not 14 [goals] already.”
RELATED STORY: From ‘lazy thinker’ to Musona and Billiat’s level: Arthur Zwane’s bold promise for Thando Ngwenya
