Orlando Pirates’ new signing Makhehlene Makhaula expressed his delight at the opportunity to play in his first Soweto Derby this weekend.
The 33-year old midfielder, who was signed from AmaZulu in January, made his debut for the Buccaneers in the Nedbank Cup last 32 clash against All Stars and was given his second appearance off the bench in a 2-1 win over Maritzburg United in the league.
In a press conference, Makhaula said, “First of all it’s really a great feeling for me to go and play my (first) Soweto Derby, I’ve always watched it on TV. I’ve been playing in the PSL for quite some time and I really wanted to play the Soweto derby. I think this is my chance to play my first Soweto Derby.”
Makhaula went on to mention several players from his hometown of Mohlakeng in Randfontein, who have inspired him to one day play for the Buccaneers.
He said, “Ben Motshwari, Oupa Manyisa, even the legend Donald ‘Ace’ Khuse also played for both. So I’ve always loved the Orlando Pirates Football Club.”
The hard-tackling midfielder has 153 league games under his belt since making his debut for the now defunct Free State Stars in 2014.
He gained prominence in the last few seasons at AmaZulu, where he was part of the team that qualified for the CAF Champions League and the group stages for the first time in the club’s history under former coach Benni McCarthy two seasons ago.
Makhaula was also a key member of the Usuthu team that reached the MTN8 final at the beginning of the season but narrowly lost 1-0 to Pirates. Makhaula is now looking forward to his first Soweto Derby and is determined to make an impact for the Buccaneers.
He said, “We do focus on our next game, the past game is gone, so it’s another clash and it’s a big one, so we need to focus on that one.”
