Injury blessing for Manyama
City star altered approach during 8-month break
PSL king Lebogang Manyama’s eight-month injury lay-off last year has turned out to be a blessing.
Manyama broke three toes playing for Mpumalanga Black Aces in February last year.
By the time he made his return Aces had been sold to John Comitis and renamed Cape Town City, who offered him a new deal.
Manyama was also given the captain’s armband and repaid their faith by scoring 14 goals in all competitions. He was rewarded at the PSL awards this week when he took home the PSL footballer of the season, players’ player of the season and the top scorer accolades.
The 26-year-old said that during the time he was sidelined, he reflected on his game and realised he needed to get more into the box to be in a position to score.
“The seven or eight months that I was out meant a lot in terms of how I approach the game. At some stage, when I was at SuperSport [United], there were a couple of mistakes that I made,” he said, but refused to dwell on the subject.
“I think one thing that has pushed me to where I am today is the fact that I play for the team. I’m selfless towards what the team has to achieve and when the team does well, certain individuals are going to be recognised.”
Manyama, meanwhile, also revisited the subject of his future. Mamelodi Sundowns coach Pitso Mosimane expressed an interest in him three months ago and as much as Manyama is honoured, he gave little away in terms of what the future holds for him.
“We can’t predict the future, can we? I went back to Cape Town for pre-season and we will see what happens.
“Obviously, it’s a huge honour to hear [Mosimane] say that. He’s the number one coach in Africa, no doubt about that and they are the number one team in Africa.
“But this is football and I had this at Ajax when I was linked with Kaizer Chiefs, Orlando Pirates and other teams. I’m used to it and it doesn’t bother me.”