DURBAN - Kaizer Chiefs midfielder Kabelo Mahlasela still possesses an immense appetite to dazzle in the famous gold and black colours of Amakhosi.
Mahlasela’s current deal with the Glamour Boys is set to expire on Tuesday. He joined Amakhosi with huge expectations surrounding him, but injuries have hampered his progress at the club. As a result, he is yet to live up to his billing.
At the start of the year, Mahlasela was sent on loan to Polokwane City to resurrect his career.
In an interview with IOL Sport, Mahlasela opened up about his love for Amakhosi, but admitted that if they don’t renew his contract, he will accept it and move on.
“It is true that my contract is up for renewal,” Mahlasela said when asked about his future at the Soweto giants. “Chiefs have an option, but I haven’t heard anything until now. It’s been difficult to engage with the club because of this Covid-19 (pandemic).
"We were all focused on whether the (Absa Premiership) league will end or not. We didn’t know what will happen. Even now, we’re still not sure. Once football returns, then we can find a solution going forward.”
With George Maluleka set to leave Amakhosi and join Mamelodi Sundowns in the new season - he has signed a pre-contract with the Tshwane-based club - Mahlasela has been touted as the right man to replace the outgoing midfielder.
Chiefs have also been banned from signing players for two transfer windows but have appealed the ban. However, there is uncertainty as to whether they will win this action, so keeping someone like Mahlasela will make sense in light of that pending decision.
“I’ll be lying if I say I don’t want to play for Kaizer Chiefs anymore,” Mahlasela said. “But this is football and this is life.
"Sometimes we don’t get all the things we want. At times you have to move and try and move out of any situation you are facing. If it happens that I go back to Chiefs, only God knows, I’ll really appreciate that. If it doesn’t, I have to move on and focus on my next move.
“What I love the most is playing football,” he added.
Mahlasela boasts immense potential and on his loan spell with Rise and Shine he was starting to show his qualities.
“I’m in contact with my agent regarding my future. Some of the things that we are talking about, it is not something that we would want to go public about," he said.
“There are lot of things that are on going. This Covid-19 (pandemic) has given me more time to think about what it is that I want to do.
"We’ve spoken with my agent and we will take it from there.”