Mailula Reveals Key Influence At Sundowns During Meteoric Rise

Toronto FC forward Cassius Mailula admits Themba Zwane was one of the key influences in his rise to prominence in the first team of Mamelodi Sundowns.

Mailula, 22, secured a lucrative move to the MLS side after just one season of senior professional football at Masandawana where he won the PSL Young Player of the Season, the DStv Premiership and netted 15 goals across all competitions.

And of the players in the star-studded squad, where he emerged as a DStv Diski Challenge talent to play a key role under head coach Rulani Mokwena, he admitted ‘Mshishi’, as the club captain was a major influence.

“Themba Zwane. He’s one person who welcomed me into the team, he was one person who will be straightforward with you – he came to me, and told me to feel free, to make mistakes but also remember everyone here is good,” Mailula told iDiski Times.

“So come here, work hard, enjoy football, stay disciplined, stay humble, because he’s one person I think… he’s humbled, works hard, believes in himself and understands it’s not easy to be at Sundowns.

“He was loaned out, came back and fought for his place. So he told me to believe in myself, I should not be discouraged by the big names that are here, just got there, showcase my talent – they brought you here because they saw something in me.

“I’m grateful for him and also [Dennis] Onyago and Bongani Zungu. They helped me to settle quickly, they explained that if I don’t understand something, go to the coach, come to us and even off the field to actually tell me to be grounded and disciplined.”

Mailula started training with his new club this week and will be aiming to make his debut on Monday when they face off against Montreal.