Johnson reacts to Zongo’s Platinum Stars claims

Coach Gavin Johnson believes he had a very good relationship with midfielder Masibusane Zongo and got the best out of him while he was on the books of the defunct club.

READ: Bad boy Zongo blames clubs for going AWOL 

Johnson signed Zongo from Chippa United to Platinum Stars where he made headlines for his match-winning performances.

Zongo claimed in a recent interview that coaches and management at some of the clubs he played at didn’t keep their word by paying him the money promised for match appearance or selecting him in the starting line-up which led to him going AWOL on some occasions.

“We had a very good relationship over there, him and I were good,” Johnson told Phakaaathi.

“I was the one who brought him to Stars and we had a good time over there but he had a few personal problems as well that I tried to help him with while he was playing under me that I thought I had managed to help him with.

Jonhson says he spoke to Zongo regularly at Stars to try and get him in the right state mentally but would not reveal the details of their many one on one conversations.

Zongo claimed that the defunct club promised to increase his salary after a certain number of games but they cancelled the agreement when the time to pay came.

“We had a lot of one on one chats with him to help with the personal stuff. But I never wanted to get involved with money and what his deal with the club. I am one of the few coaches in the country who doesn’t get involved in money talks because it is the root of all evil. I tried to help him as a player and for him to be at his best and to sort out his personal stuff.”

For more news your way, download The Citizen’s app for iOS and Android.