‘THE NFD WAS TOO LOW FOR HIM’

Former Black Leopards coach Jean-Francois Losciuto says he could immediately see Siphelele Ntshangase was set for greater heights than South Africa’s second-tier. “I could already see within a short time that the NFD was just too low for him,” the Belgian coach says. “I even told him when he came to see me in Richards Bay just before Christmas that I wasn’t surprised to see him joining Kaizer Chiefs. His positive spirit was always bound to help him go further because he didn’t only depend on his talent and intelligence on the field. He was the kind of boy who understood quickly the tactics that I was using at Leopards from the first day that I spoke to him.” Losciuto then gives interesting insight into the training methods used by the talented midfielder. “He was always the first guy on the pitch at training,” he says. “In the days before we played in the play-offs, he was always at training one hour before the morning session started and would be the first one on the pitch with three balls, trying out a lot of things. He always tried everything, including corner kicks. Working with him was a big pleasure for me because he was very professional, so it is not a surprise to see him at Chiefs now. He was the best player on the pitch at Leopards. He doesn’t have a big ego and is humble which is always important in football.”