Mfundo Vilakazi may not have been around to celebrate Kaizer Chiefs' first major trophy success in 10 years, but there's nothing he'd change about the last few weeks.
Now an African champion with the national under-20 team, Vilakazi had no qualms about leaving Amakhosi while the season was still on to represent the country at the Under-20 Africa Cup of Nations in Egypt. He is, after all, an African champion and it's something no one can ever take away from him.
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After winning the competition on Sunday evening, courtesy of a 1-0 victory over Morocco, Vilakazi and his teammates were given a warm welcome by supporters at OR Tambo international airport.
His mother, father, grandmother and siblings were in attendance as they showed how proud they were of his achievement of being part of the first ever under-20 group of players to win a major continental title.
He watched from Egypt when Chiefs won the Nedbank Cup title, but has not regrets because he proudly wears his AFCON gold medal around his neck.
"I was not sad because, when you look at it, the years are moving. I am 19 and, at my club, I am still going to play for seven to 10 years. For the national team, I had to go because of the position I am in right now," he told media at the airport on Tuesday afternoon.
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On top of being African champions, Amajita have qualified for the FIFA Under-20 World Cup which will be played in Chile later this year. He will have another opportunity to play at major international tournament, which will help him gain valuable experience.
"I am so happy. I don't believe it. When we went there, we wanted to qualify for the World Cup. Being in the final and winning the trophy is not something we had spoken about because our goal was to qualify for the World Cup," he said.
