Red-hot Lamola scoops award
Celtic marksman likely to be targeted by bigger clubs after great season
LERATO Lamola’s scoring form that has taken him to the top of the PSL scoring charts saw the Bloemfontein Celtic striker win the PSL’s player of the month award for April and May.
And if Lamola’s form has put him in the shop window, it just might have attracted the attention of the coach who received that category’s monthly award at yesterday’s announcement at the PSL offices in Parktown, Kaizer Chiefs’ Stuart Baxter.
Baxter won coach of the month for steering Chiefs to four crucial, successive victories – against AmaZulu, Pretoria University, Polokwane City and Mamelodi Sundowns – that saw Amakhosi wrap up the championship with three games remaining.
Lamola showed a verbal version of the neat sidestep he has shown rounding defenders when asked whether he might consider offers from bigger clubs in the off-season. “For me to be approached by another team, I will hand that over to my team because I am still contracted to Celtic until 2017,” he replied.
The striker aims to score in Celtic’s final game against Moroka Swallows at Dobsonville Stadium tomorrow to try to ensure he wins the season’s golden boot award. Lamola is the PSL’s joint-top scorer with Free State Stars’ Moeketsi Sekola on 13 goals. Polokwane City’s Puleng Tlolane is second on 11.
Lamola might have noticed that the coach sitting next to him said that Chiefs probably will need to go into the transfer market in the off-season. Especially interesting, perhaps, given that Amakhosi’s title-winning season has been noted for having come even though the club did not possess a reliable scorer at striker.
Baxter was asked again about his future at Chiefs, having steered Amakhosi to his second league and cup double in three years.
“I don’t think coaches themselves can decide if you’re going to be the Arsene Wenger of any club, because our job is a results-driven industry. And if I’m flavour of the month this month, noone knows if I will be next month,” the coach said.