KwaMashu friends set to collide as Pirates meet Chiefs in derby

As the old cliché of South African football would say “friends will become foes” when Orlando Pirates take on Kaizer Chiefs in the Soweto derby at the FNB Stadium on Saturday. Cele was announced as the Chiefs player on Monday.

READ MORE: Chiefs confirm three January signings including Cele

This cliché will come into fruition when Thalente Mbatha of Pirates faces his childhood friend and new Chiefs recruit Thabo Cele at the sold-out event at Soccer City.

Having grown up together in the location of KwaMashu near Durban their dream was to one day grace the biggest stage in South African football and that is the Soweto derby and Mbatha is looking forward to the occasion and believes that KwaMashu will be divided again on Saturday.

“It’s true that Thabo (Cele) and I grew up together in the same area of G in KwaMashu, we were just separated by sections as he stays at 3 and I at 4. And to answer the question as to whether KwaMashu would be divided on a Saturday, I could say that it was already divided before with some supporting my area and others supporting the area of 3. But I believe that it’s a healthy challenge (division),” Mbatha told the media at Rand Stadium on Tuesday.

“I’m happy for him [for Cele joining Kaizer Chiefs]. He’s one person that has always been determined [to succeed] in the football industry. He’s one person that is really passionate about the game of soccer. Even when we are back at ekasi (location), he’ll create groups during the offseason for us to continue training and that’s how determined he is.”

Mbatha doesn’t doubt his Thalente

Mbatha has been one of the key players at Pirates since joining them from SuperSport United in July last year. He has fitted well in Jose Riveiro’s squad and the 24-year-old says this doesn’t come as a surprise to him because he has never doubted his talent and always knew he would succeed at Pirates.

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“I never had doubts about the talent that I have and coming here (at Pirates), I told myself that it’s a move where I can prove that I have the quality to play in the PSL (Betway Premiership). I believe that the reason why I was able to excel it’s because we had enough time to prepare as a team because the AFCON was playing at the time. I think playing those friendlies and the coach believing in me also helped me in terms of improving my game,” said Mbatha.