Orlando Pirates teenager Relebohile Mofokeng has a chance of hitting greater heights for both the Sea Robbers and Bafana Bafana if he emulates Barcelona hot-shot Lamine Yamal.
In his first full season with Barca, Yamal – who is just 16 years old, played 50 games across all competitions, and managed to score seven goals. In La Liga, the youngster had five goals and as many assists in the 37 matches he featured.
It explains why Spain coach Luis de la Fuente has opted to include the attacker in his squad for the Euro 2024 that starts on Friday, June 14 in Germany.
What did Mofokeng achieve in his first full season with Bucs?
In the 2023/24 season, Mofokeng played 38 matches across all competitions for the Sea Robbers, managing five goals and six assists in the process. It could have been more but indecisiveness in the final third cost him.
The 19-year-old also managed to go to England where he tried out with the Premier League side Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos then opted to include the youngster in his team that played Nigeria and Zimbabwe respectively in the just concluded 2026 Fifa World Cup qualifiers. Mofokeng made his debut against the latter, coming on late in place of Oswin Appollis amidst cheers from the South Africa fans.
However, the youngster has been weak defensively, something Broos told him to work on if he intends to become a complete player.
Emulate Yamal to do better next season – Modise asks Mofokeng
South Africa and Mamelodi Sundowns legend Teko Modise believes Mofokeng can greatly improve by taking a closer look at Yamal's style of play.
“I think Mofokeng should watch Yamal because his maturity is something similar to Mofokeng,” he told the media.
“I just hope that all footballers will be watching the Euros to learn something and see what they can improve on, because it would be sad to see Mofokeng not improve his numbers or do better next season.”
Mofokeng has been tipped to be even bigger next season, with several teams from Europe reportedly chasing his services.
