Brave Warriors legend and one of Namibia’s most decorated footballers Congo Hindjou has hailed local football export Peter Shalulile, saying the young striker is only getting started with his high-flying career and more goals and magical moments should be expected from the 27-year-old.
Shalulile has been in superb form and consistent in front of goal, which has seen him rescue his South African DStv Premiership club Mamelodi Sundowns from the jaws of defeat on multiple occasions in various competitions.
The Namibian young striker, who has been hogging the headlines with his remarkable goal-scoring prowess since his arrival at Sundowns at the start of the current term, currently boasts a total of nine goals accumulated from 14 appearances in different competitions that include the CAF Champions League and Nedbank Cup.
Not only has he been scoring with relative ease, but Shalulile has consistently been instrumental in assisting his teammates score vital goals when it most matters for the league log leaders. The South African media have also praised the Namibian for his unmatched maturity and equanimity in front of goal.
On Wednesday this week during Sundowns’ Nedbank Cup clash against Stellenbosch at the Loftus Versfeld Stadium in Pretoria, Shalulile was again in the thick of things when he scored twice to help Sundowns grab a 3-2 stoppage win over Stellenbosch to reach the last 16 of the Nedbank Cup.
The striker’s maturing rich vein of form has not gone unnoticed as Brave Warriors retired box-to-box midfield genius Hindjou yesterday came out to shower Shalulile with praise, saying the striker continues to prove all doubting Thomases wrong with each new game.
“I’m very impressed with what I have been witnessing so far, but I also have to say that I’m not totally shocked by the remarkable work Shalulile is doing at Sundowns because the boy has proven to all that he is only getting better and more is yet to come. One thing that I can tell you is that Shalulile is your typical old-fashioned 120 minutes player, meaning this is a guy who works hard from the first minute of the match and all the way beyond the required 90 minutes and that is something that sets him apart from others. He is hard-working and disciplined and another improvement that I have seen since he joined Sundowns is his maturity in front of goal, his positioning and the timely runs he is making behind defenders. In all honesty, he is only getting started and we should expect many more goals and magical moments. The boy is just exceptional,” said Hindjou, a pioneering member of the famed Brave Warriors class of 1998.
– ohembapu@nepc.com.na