POLOKWANE – Polokwane United Development Academy rising star Thato Sebopele was recently invited to join Portugal Premier Soccer league outfit AD Ovarense Football Club after his exploits in the Polokwane soccer league.
The teenager enjoyed an exciting year at the Polokwane United Development Academy.
The 18-year-old is a forward who joined the Red Lions in January 2021, after impressing at the trials hosted at the end of 2020.
Born in 2004, Sebopela is fast and highly technical. He is also versatile and can play on wing or centre and has a serious eye for goals.
He has very impressive goal statistics.
As part of the player development programme and pathway, Polokwane United sent Sebopela to Portugal in July and August this year for a training experience with AD Ovarense. “It was an amazing experience and a great opportunity which will stay with me for a very long time,”Sebopela quipped.
The development training communications officer, Tim Smart said Sebopela is a player who has displayed a high level of discipline and dedication towards becoming a professional player.
“His hard work and professionalism have been rewarded with the opportunity to train overseas. Before Thato went to Portugal, he was scoring goals and working hard. We believed he was deserving of the opportunity to taste European football.
“Since he is a Gr 11 learner at Phomolong Secondary School, we expected him to come back to complete matric and then build on his experience from Portugal to become a better player.”
As part of the player pathway to professional football, the academy is continuously looking at ways to prepare their boys for the international market.
“I learned so much in my time in Ovar. The language was a bit of a challenge because I can’t speak Portuguese and the coach’s instructions during training were only in Portuguese. But luckily I had teammates to translate for me. Now I want to complete my matric and continue to improve my football. I am looking to go and ply my trade overseas. I will be ready when the opportunity comes,” Sebopela said.
The academy has some very exciting prospects in the structures and plans to send more players at a younger age to Europe in the coming years.
“We ideally want to send our best talents at a younger age so that they get experience and continue to improve their game,” Smart said.
Polokwane United Academy has produced the likes of Kgaogelo Sekgotha who played for Kaizer Chiefs and Bafana Bafana, and Nakedi Chipu who plays for AD Ovarense in Portugal.
