Kaizer Chiefs midfielder Sibongiseni “Ox” Mthethwa acknowledges that it won’t be easy to return to the starting XI when he recovers from the injury he sustained late last year.
Mthethwa, who last featured in Chiefs’ 1-all draw against Egyptian side Zamalek in their second CAF Confederation Cup Group D fixture in Polokwane in November, admits he must prove himself again.
Prior to sustaining the unspecified injury he’s nursing, the 31-year-old midfield enforcer had started 17 of the 18 games he played this season.
Mthethwa’s absence has since seen a rebirth of the new midfield combination of Siphesihle Ndlovu and Lebohang Maboe at Amakhosi. The pair, who played together at Maritzburg United, have hardly put a foot wrong.
“I am approaching a difficult time because I will have to prove myself again. I will have to replicate the good performances I displayed before I got injured,” he said.
Even so, he embraces the stiff competition in the engine room.
“The competition for places will always be there, so whoever is being given a chance must use it properly. The competition is a healthy one and it encourages me to work harder,” he said.
Mthethwa is also grateful for the support he’s been getting at the club during his recovery from his “first ever” career injury.
“It’s my first time being sidelined by an injury but everyone at the club has been supportive,” the lad from Estcourt in KwaZulu-Natal said.
He didn’t hide that Amakhosi were gunning for the league title and the Confederation Cup after they were elbowed out of the Nedbank Cup by Stellenbosch in the first round last week. This is the trophy they lifted last season, ending their decade-long drought.
“We were knocked out of the Nedbank Cup, so now our focus is on the domestic league and the Confederation Cup. We’re pumped up to go all the way in these two remaining competitions,” Mthethwa said.
Sowetan
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