Is Majoro the real deal?

So our transfer season has been going great, at least up to now. We’ve made quite a few signings, good ones and better ones and that makes me generally happy. I think the one signing that really stands out is that of Lehlohonolo Majoro. If you don’t know, we signed him from AmaZulu just about a week ago.

Since Majoro put pen to paper, a lot has been said about him and lots of praises and good feedback from the Kaizer Chiefs fraternity. Everyone is convinced he’s the best signing we’ve made in recent years and clearly one of Bobby’s best acquisitions as our football manager. People say we finally signed a striker who can score and while I agree with some of the positive comments, I must admit I have my own concerns. Not because I think he’s a bad or average player, but maybe because of all the expectation and pressure we are already putting on him.

Interestingly praise is also coming from his fellow colleagues. Striker Sthembiso Ngcobo had this to say:

“Technically Majoro is a fantastic player he has an abundance of skill, is very quick and can take on the opposition as a result of his speed and is a fantastic finisher in front of goal. Like I said earlier I believe having him in the team will bring out the best in me, and overall his acquisition will prove to be a good one.”

That of course brings me to the reason for writing this blog today. Is Majoro the real deal, should we be labeling him the new ‘cult-hero’? Even at this very early stage?

Could he possibly fill Musona’s boots?
Ok, we all know that the club is very close to selling our last season’s top goal scorer and the question everyone is asking is who will be his replacement? Who will be the 15-goal (best average by our South African standards) a season striker? While many have already dubbed Majoro as that replacement I think that’s a bit too much considering he hasn’t even kicked a ball wearing our Zebra shirt. You see there’s one thing most people don’t understand or sometimes choose to ignore; Kaizer Chiefs is a very BIG club, with a very rich history and a legion of demanding fans. Donning the famous gold and black is not a fashion statement, it’s not to look cool or like a Zebra. Once you put on that shirt, a lot of is expected of you, you are expected to start performing from game 1. Unfortunately in the past we’ve seen great players come to Chiefs with a lot of ‘oomph’ but fail to live up to expectations as soon as they start playing. The most recent examples include Jose Torrealba who was one of the best strikers in South African while playing for the Sunflower Bakery from Chloorkop, but failed dismally when he came to Chiefs.

The ugly truth here is that Kaizer Chiefs fans are not the most patient of supporters, they are used to winning, that’s what the club is known for. And that can put a lot of pressure on some players, sometimes I just think it’s lack of balls from those players, but to be realistic, it’s about how you deal with pressure to perform when wearing the famous Gold and Black zebra-jersey. The other players who are clearly struggling because of this are Ngcobo and the fan favourite Mthokozisi Yende. And I don’t say this because I think they are bad players, but I’m saying this because I know for a fact that Yende for instance was the best player at amaTuks and you will all agree that he’s never ever produced the kind of form he did then since he joined us. Did he become a bad player over night? No he didn’t, it’s that pressure the Zebra puts on you as a player. I could go on all day mentioning players who’ve succumbed to this pressure because there are lots of them. Remember Thuso Phala?

Anyway, the point I’m making here is that it took Musona a whole season to find his feet and become the player that he is today in the Kaizer Chiefs jersey. And maybe that’s because we didn’t know a lot about him when he signed, but the fact is that we didn’t put that much pressure on him and he became our best in recent times. So maybe instead of saying Majoro will replace Musona because of how he played in his first season as a professional player, we should perhaps look at him as a ‘virgin’ who still has a lot to learn. It would have been great for him to play alongside Musona but the club is hell-bent on making money this year it’s not even funny anymore.  Because not only would he acquire a lot of ‘Knowledge’ from Musona, but it would also take a lot of pressure off him.

In short, Majoro is not Musona’s replacement; he just doesn’t have the ‘Knowledge’ to be his replacement just yet.

One season wonder?How many of these have we seen over the years? Remember how hot Diyo Sibisi was at Free State Stars in his first season? What happened afterwards? Well I’ll tell you what happened; defenders figured him out and I think its fit to say he’s never ever been the same player he was in his first season. Not to sound negative or pessimistic, but how do we know Majoro is not a one season wonder? He’s only played one SEASON as a professional player for goodness sake! So maybe we should hold back with the expectations we are already putting on him and let him be.

To add on this, I asked a question on twitter (@khosiblog) the other day and I got interesting comments from the legendary George Dearnaley (@zulushark) and Soccer Laduma’s Clint Roper (@SoccaClint):

“The 2nd season tells a lot more about a new PSL striker than the 1st “ – Clint Roper

“I had 23 in 1st season then 14 in 2nd… #slump #2ndseason#tightmarking” – George Dearnaley

Do I need to add on to that? I think not, so I wont.

I know we are all excited, but how much do we really know about the lad? Is he the real deal?

Till next time,
Khosi4Life