JOHANNESBURG - Lehlogonolo Masalesa doesn’t regret his decision to rejoin relegation-threatened Platinum Stars.
Masalesa (25) made his return to the Absa Premiership at beginning of the season having spent a season plying his trade in Greece.
According to his agent Paul Mitchell, the former Orlando Pirates midfielder came back to the Absa Premiership because he wanted to catch the eye of Bafana Bafana coach Stuart Baxter.
And he did just that, with Baxter calling Masalesa up for the recent Cosafa Cup and even made him his captain.
After his spell with Athlitiki Enosi Larrisa FC in Greece, Masalesa decided to join Dikwena although he had offers from the likes of Cape Town City. His idea was to push for the Bafana jersey since the next year it is a World Cup year.
Speaking after his side secured their first victory of the season by beating Maritzburg United in penalty shoot-outs in the first round of the Telkom Knockout at the Harry Gwala Stadium on Friday, Masalesa was still confident that he made the right decision.
“I don’t regret joining Platinum Stars. Obviously we haven’t started the way we would have loved to but it is still to early. We can still bounce back. Tonight’s victory will enhance our confidence. We knew it was a matter of time before we got a result. We are fighting as team and I have no doubt we will start to climb the ladder on the log. I made the decision I needed to make and I think it was the best decision,” Masalesa explained.
Dikwena are sitting at the bottom of the league table after nine matches and are yet to register maximum points in the Absa Premiership.the league. But Viera is seeing some light for his team ahead.
“We’ve improved in the last few matches. We drew against Orlando Pirates and Free State Stars and then there's this win against Maritzburg. We are slowly but surely making our strides. We will continue to fight. For me personally, I must admit that injuries have set me back but they are part of football. I have to work hard. This was my first 90 minutes and I really enjoyed myself. I want to build on this performance. We have another tough assignment against Ajax Cape Town but we have to continue to fight for wins."
And the national team?
"Bafana is not on my mind at the moment, I want to focus on Platinum Stars and the rest will follow.”
Stars will host Ajax at the Royal Bafokeng Stadium in a league match on Wednesday (kickoff, 7.30pm).
“We have a strong enough team to compete in the league. I’m confident that this slump will pass. We want to take the club in to a respectable position in the log. The good thing is that we have a very capable coach in Roger de Sa to help us achieve that.”