CAPE TOWN – Mpho Makola will effectively replace Teko Modise as Cape Town City’s senior citizen and potential midfield talisman after joining the club as a free agent from Orlando Pirates.
The 33-year-old Makola first sprung to prominence at Free State Stars before he signed for Pirates in 2012, going on to spend seven successful seasons with the Buccaneers during which time he became a regular fixture in the Bafana Bafana setup.
"Cape Town City are delighted to announce the signing of South African midfielder Mpho Makola on a two-year deal. Welcome to the Mother City Bibo," the club stated on social media on Tuesday.
%%%twitter https://twitter.com/hashtag/MakolaAnnounced?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#MakolaAnnounced pic.twitter.com/SxXImgSqmZ
— Cape Town City FC (@CapeTownCityFC)
Modise, who retired from football at the end of last season, was a player in a similar mould to Makola, in terms of the PSL stature he enjoyed amongst fans, as well his creative spark and the ability to change a game with a moment of brilliance.
And like Modise, Makola is a marketable player and one who should help the club add more numbers to their rapidly-increasing fan base.
The move down south will see Makola reuniting with Benni McCarthy, now the Cape Town City head coach - who spent the last couple of years of his own playing career at Pirates.
Makola will also meet up with another one of his former Bucs team-mates, Abbubaker Mobara, who is on City's new signings list, a list which also includes Tashreeq Morris (Ajax Cape Town) and Netherlands-born winger Bernio Verhagen (Dinamo Tiraspol‚ Moldova).
Makola has never been a prolific goal-scorer but is an excellent option on set-pieces and his attacking quality and eye for the assist could be welcome news for the likes of Kermit Erasmus, Siphelele Mthembu and the newly-arrived Morris.
The Cape side begin their league campaign away at Baroka FC this Saturday afternoon.