Kaizer Chiefs starlet Mfundo Vilakazi spoke on how he responds to the haters and shared advice to fellow youngsters who dream of following in his footsteps.
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What's the story?
Amakhosi's latest academy product Mfundo Vilakazi has been the talk of the Khosi Nation, even before he made his first team debut this year.
Affectionately known as "Obrigado", the teenager recently spoke about breaking into Chiefs' senior team, the pressure, his response to what people have to say about him and his advice for youngsters who are eager to follow in his footsteps.
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Let's take a closer look...
Mfundo Vilakazi
Amakhosi academy graduate, Mfundo Vilakazi already has quite the cult following, despite having only made a couple of appearances for Cavin Johnson's side.
His first game for the Soweto giants came in Chiefs Nedbank Cup defeat to Millford FC, with the Johnson rewarding the teenage sensation with game time after showcasing his talent in both the DStv Diski Challenge and the Carling Black Label All-Stars match against Stellenbosch FC in January.
The Soweto-born prodigy has shown a glimpse of what he can offer Chiefs on attack and recently spoke to Football Stage while at the SA under-20 training camp, hosted at the SAFA Technical Centre in the south of Johannesburg.
The camp is part of their preparations for the 2025 AFCON qualifiers in September this year. Vilakazi reflected on making his Chiefs debut and how he deals with the pressure and external noise:
"I'm very happy to be playing in the Kaizer Chiefs senior team but it's not easy. I have to work incredibly hard in order to get myself more minutes," said Vilakazi, who added:
"Some people come up to me and say 'You're a star ntwana, why is the coach not giving you minutes,' I don't internalise that. I just continue to worry about my own path and continue to work hard at the gym, because my time is coming," says Vilakazi, who also called out fans that were poking fun at him for being a ball boy and are now calling for him to start games.
"On my side, all the things that people have to say eKasi, go through one ear and go out the other..." adds the focused youngster.
Watch below:
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