Orlando Pirates teenage sensation Relebohile Mofokeng has paid tribute to coach Jose Riveiro for his growth this season.
Mofokeng was promoted from the side’s development ranks last season and has had South Africa captivated. This season, he helped Pirates to a domestic cup double and also earned his first senior national team call-up.
The 19-year-old Sharpeville-born talent told reporters after his Nedbank Cup feats in an interview carried in edition 157 of IDiski Times, how the Spaniard has individual sessions with him and has revealed to him where his game was deficient.
“He always comes to me and talks to me and advises me on what to do and what not to do,” Mofokeng told iDiski Times.
“To mark because I can’t only play when we are attacking. So he advises me to mark as well because that’s the only thing that’s missing from my game. He has helped me lot because he does have a lot of individual sessions with me to help me grow and improve.”
Mofokeng has reportedly caught the eye of Levante FC (Spain), Wolverhampton Wanderers (England), Glasgow Rangers (Scotland), RB Salzburg (Austria), and Al Ahly (Egypt).
However, Bafana coach Hugo Broos has cautioned Mofokeng against an overseas move.
“No! That’s what I said also to [Cassius] Mailula. This is not the right moment to go overseas,” Broos said after being asked if Mofokeng is ready to leave Orlando Pirates, as per iDiskiTimes.
“He played what? 18 games, he doesn’t have any international experience. What I said about Mailula, I repeat now to Mofokeng: stay at Pirates.
“Play another season here in South Africa, maybe with the Champions League, and then he will be a better player. You see what happened with Mailula. He went to Toronto, and there were two former Italian internationals. What are you going to do with a young player from South Africa there?
“He didn’t play many games; he sat on the bench. What does he learn there? I hope Mofokeng’s agent is more astute than Mailula’s, and he prioritizes what is important for the player, not just for himself.
“Let’s see what happens, and I hope that he remains at [Orlando] Pirates and plays another season,” Broos concluded.