Doctor Makes Bold Maseko Claim

Kaizer Chiefs legend Doctor Khumalo has stated Mamelodi Sundowns winger Thapelo Maseko is easy to defend against, because he’s too one-dimensional.

Maseko, 20, started his first official game for his new club and caused havoc down the left flank in the first half against Kaizer Chiefs, with many of Masandawana’s attacks coming down his flank, but Reeve Frosler largely defending him well.

The young winger was named Man of the Match after Downs’ 2-1 win, but Khumalo wasn’t as impressed as others with Maseko, saying he is kind of an “old-fashioned” winger and “easy to defend against”.

“Because when you force him to go to the left he is comfortable. So you close the line, which the line is the defender by the way because when the ball goes out you lose possession,” he said during his post-match analysis on SABC Sport.

“So you force him to come inside but the players, the two central defenders need to be smart because when you push him towards the traffic, when we dispossess, that on its own needs a transitional player where we come out quicker because they were attacking and at the back they are not set.

“So a player like this is easy to play against. If I was on the bench I would have said ‘allow Maseko to have the ball’ because I’ve seen his right [foot], it’s none existent, it’s for going to the mall.

“So allow him to do that, maybe you ask [Edson] Castillo or [Siyethemba] Sithebe to show him the space to use, they did that in the second half once.

“And in the first half they made him look good because he is an old-fashioned type of a player, he hits the run, he doesn’t have any other option.

“The only time he is going out, trying to cross, there was one cross where he was balanced, all the crosses he fell now what does that mean? It means the space is small so he forced himself there so now allow him to go in, let’s see whether he has individual brilliance to manoeuvre because he’s got only one option, to go on the left, cross, finish.”