Luke Baartman breaks silence on life at Kaizer Chiefs after long-awaited debut

Kaizer Chiefs forward Luke Baartman has opened up on his stint at the club since joining the Soweto giants from Cape Town Spurs.

Baartman was among the players who joined Chiefs late owing to a case filed by his ex-club Cape Town Spurs, which had been contesting his and Asanele Vaebayi’s departure as free agents.

Chiefs had to be patient until the case and subsequent appeal, both dismissed, were concluded before they registered the attacking duo, making them eligible to don the black and gold jersey.

Baartman endured a frustrating wait

However, while Velebayi made his Chiefs debut much earlier, Baartman had to wait with questions raised over his whereabouts and there was even talk of sending him to the Diski Challenge team to gain match fitness, a proposal that was shot down by Sporting Director Kaizer Motaung Jr.

Baartman got his long-awaited debut when he came on as a late substitute during Chiefs’ goalless draw with TS Galaxy on Sunday December 7 and nearly scored in stoppage time.

“It felt good to be back on the field and it was a proud moment for me to wear the Chiefs jersey,” Baartman told Chiefs’ media team in reference to his debut.

What is Chiefs star looking forward to?

“After training hard for the past few months, it was rewarding to finally play for this great institution. Though it wasn’t easy, since I haven’t played for a while, I feel I contributed to the attack as we tried to unlock Galaxy’s defence.”

With the league taking a break for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations, the attacker is hoping to stay fit for the second half of the season, when he anticipates more minutes from the coaching staff as Chiefs challenge for domestic and continental trophies.

“I wish our supporters happy festive holidays and a Merry Christmas. We look forward to seeing them in numbers again after the break as we resume our league and Confederation Cup campaigns,” he added.