While it remains a mystery as to why SuperSport United didn't see a need to keep Thalente Mbatha as their asset, it seems Orlando Pirates might have hit a jackpot by signing the youngster as his star continues to grow.
In the recent FIFA international week, Mbatha enjoyed a dream debut for Bafana Bafana as he scored an equalising goal in the 2-2 draw against Uganda in the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers in Orlando.
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The 24-year-old was again on the scoresheet with a winning strike in the match that followed – the 3-2 victory over South Sudan in an away clash.
Mbatha completed a permanent move to the Buccaneers at the end of last season, having impressed during a six-month loan spell at the club from SuperSport.
In the two-and-a-half seasons with Matsatsantsa, Mbatha didn't enjoy regular game time, with only 11 starts for him from 23 League appearances.
Former Pirates midfielder Lebogang Mothibantwa believes that the improved level of competition at the Soweto giants has elevated Mbatha's game.
"In football, sometimes one needs to change the environment to excel. With Gavin Hunt, he knows what type of a player he wanted for that position, and the boy came to Pirates to start afresh. Being surrounded by quality players at a club like Pirates, can assist someone to realise his true potential. Now that he is competing with the best players, it has automatically lifted his standard. That's what happened to this boy," said Mothibantwa, speaking exclusively to the Siya crew.
"It is a very good motivation for the other players to say that if a coach doesn't see a role for you, it doesn't mean that it's the end of your career there. All that is needed is to take these things with a positive attitude. That boy told himself that he is talented, and he was determined to make use of his talent. He just told himself that once he got his chance, he would just flow. Now, I would like to see him flowing like that for six to seven years and doing his thing consistently. That's the challenge he is having now, the consistency. It shouldn't be for two seasons, but for six or more seasons. We've got this problem where our players are at their peak for only one season or two, and then the careers start going down. We need to protect these boys, the likes of Thalente and (Relebohile) Mofokeng. As a country we should be saying, 'We have seen the likes of Lebo Mothibantwa and that they came and gone, but with these ones, let us see them for six seasons consistently.' That will be important for us to do," he said.
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"I am very happy that Pirates have adapted to the change of football, and they can see it that football is evolving. For these boys, it's going to be so easy to go and play anywhere. But they must never forget that they will need to put in a lot of discipline into their game. If Pirates will be going for another pre-season camp in Spain next year, they should be investing for that by working on continuously improving their game now to increase their chances of being seen that they are technical ready and things like that. It's a very good thing that Pirates and these other teams in the PSL are going to these overseas teams for pre-season camps as that will increase the chances of our young players to be noticed," concluded Mothibantwa.
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