Gabonamong tips mogorosi to bounce back
Thato Kala | Monday October 27, 2014 16:24
Despite being named the Free State club’s captain before the start of the season, Mogorosi has seen little action after nine games.
In fact, Mogorosi and Gabonamong and two Malawian internationals, who recently played in the AFCON qualifiers for their countries, may face difficulties in finding their way back into the Celtic line-up.
The club’s German coach, Ernst Middendorp, has previously refused to release his foreign players for national duty saying he needed to work with them in preparation for club competitions.
At some point, he clashed with Zebras’ coach, Peter Butler over the release of Mogorosi and Gabonamong. The duo missed the Zebras’ two-legged fixture against Guinea Bissau, which fell outside the FIFA calendar. Middendorp refused to release the players for the game.
After returning from the international break when Zebras played Egypt home and away, the two were omitted from the Celtic squad that played Polokwane City and Pretoria University.
Before the qualifiers, Gabonamong played in the 3-2 defeat to Amazulu while Mogorosi was an unused substitute.
“Joel will be fine. He has not played a couple of games because of this national team issue, but I strongly believe he will be fine,” Gabonamong told Monitor Sport.
He stated that it was almost impossible to return from national team duty and walk back into the first team at the club.
“It is true, football is about competition, so the moment you go to the national team, something you cannot refuse, you know you will have to fight really hard to convince the coaches you deserve a place,” he said.
He believes the most affected players are youngsters, who are still out to make a name for themselves in the game.
“It affects young players quite a lot because they are still trying to establish themselves. So it is important to make the right decisions about one’s career.
It is not only in Europe where African players struggle after national team duty, it happens everywhere because you have so many players who also want to play.
But the national team is equally important; you need it also to make a name for yourself. So it is a costly sacrifice after all,” he said.
Meanwhile, former Platinum Stars and Supersport United coach, Calvin Johnson, has said the transition from national team duty to the club should not pose problems.
“It depends on how the coach works with his players. I always regard it an honour for one to go and play for his national team. My opinion is that, as a coach, you have to look at how the player would have performed for his country because it always an upgrade to play in the national team. If his performance was good, get the player back as quick as possible,” he asserted.