Thalente Mbatha is living the dream at Orlando Pirates and reaping the fruits of his hard labour following a turbulent spell at former club SuperSport United.
Mbatha is one of the best midfielders in the country. He doesn’t only boss the engine room – bringing stability – but he also has a knack for goal. He has scored important goals for both club and country, Pirates and Bafana Bafana, contributing to the CAF Champions League and Afcon qualifiers campaigns.
His resurgence has set tongues given that he wasn’t playing at former club SuperSport United in his last few months, before surprisingly surfacing at Pirates last January.
The tough spells at SuperSport under coach Gavin Hunt could have easily broken him had Pirates not come calling during the summer transfer window. But not Mbatha. The 24-year-old has always known that he was blessed with abundant talent – a prophecy that was made by his parents when they named him Thalente.
Now he is set to star for the Buccaneers in Saturday’s Premiership Soweto Derby against Kaizer Chiefs at the FNB Stadium (3.30pm kick-off).
“I didn’t have doubts about the talent that I have,” he said. “That’s why I could say that coming here, I told myself it’s a move where I must show I have the qualities of playing in the PSL.
“So, I am not a person who seeks attention because you wouldn’t see ... But yes, (not playing) did influence my game.
“But I believe the reason I was able to excel is because we had enough time to prepare as a team because Afcon was (being played) when I came to Orlando Pirates.
“So, I believe playing friendly games and the coach believing in me gave me confidence of bouncing back in a certain way. So, I’d like to thank Orlando Pirates and the technical team.”
Pirates’ technical team is led by coach Jose Riveiro, who has played a pivotal role in shaping Mbatha into the footballer that he is today.
The Spaniard’s belief in Mbatha has been there for all to see, so much so that Riveiro had a go at ‘The Ghost’ when they jeered the midfielder when he lost possession against CR Belouizdad.
Mbatha repaid the coach for the trust in his abilities as he went on to lift Orlando Stadium’s roof with a scorcher, moments after being jeered by the fans.
“I’d like to thank the coach specifically because he’s one person who’s always talking to me, and telling me what I must improve on,” Mbatha said.
“I think that’s one of the things that has been great for me. Hence, it was a dream come true to come here and join the team.”
Riveiro hasn’t done it alone, though. Midfielder Makhehleni Makhaula has always been Mbatha’s ‘older brother’ on and off the pitch since his arrival in Gauteng in 2019.
When they went their separate ways in 2020, with Mbatha joining SuperSport and Makhaula moving to AmaZulu, they continued to keep in touch.
Early last year, they reunited at Pirates. And that has been one of Mbatha’s happiest moments in his career as he gets to share the dressing room and pitch with his mentor daily.
Mbatha is expected to start when Pirates host arch-rivals Kaizer Chiefs in the Soweto Derby on Saturday afternoon. This is a game where he’ll want to showcase his qualities as he continues to live the dream at Pirates.
“I could say that Makhaula is a big brother to me,” the lad from KwaMashu said. “I came here in 2019, and I was still young. I got him at Highlands Park, and he’s been an older brother since.
“Us coming here, and finding him at Orlando Pirates again, is something that really made me happy. He is one person that I didn’t lose contact with from Highlands Park.
“He’s been a big brother to me since I came to Joburg. He used to give me lifts when I didn’t have a car. The relationship is great and amazing.”