Khama Billiat poses with Zim as Sundowns celebrate league triumph PHOTO : GIFT NDOLWANE / CAJ News
Chris Dube, the owner of this column, has left me with a rather uphill task of temporarily assuming the reins when went AWOL.
I’m told my brother had one too many at the Absa Premier Soccer L e a g u e Aw a r d s h e l d a t t h e Emperors’ Palace in Egoli. As I’m cobbling this column on his behalf, the brotherman is nursing what has been termed a gigantic babalas.
Talking about the awards .
Mamelodi Sundowns’ diminutive attacker Khama Billiat was the star of the show after he bagged three crucial awards. The Zimbabwean international, who immediately boarded the plane to his native Harare for Zimbabwe’s African Cup of Nations qualifier fixture against Malalwi, won the
Midfielder of the Season, Players’ Player of the Season and Footballer of the Season, capping a thunderous season for his club.
He walked away with a cool R450 000!!! As if that was not enough, the champions had defender Thabo Nthete on the podium to colllect the Defender of the Season and Telkom Player of the Tournament, while gaffer Pitso Mosimane was obviously received the gong for being the best man in the dug out.
It capped a momentous year for the T s h w a n e s i d e , b u t m o r e importantly for Billiat as an individual. In my humble opinion, the 25 year-old trickster needs to immediately pack his bags for the proverbial greener pastures in Europe, where his talent can blossom further.
Khama no longer has anything to prove locally. Chances are if he stays around, he will start to decline because he will place himself in the comfort zone. It is high time he met his match or better opposition. His amazing statistics locally are impressive but unfortunately might not be the best yardstick to judge his ability.
A case in point was Sundowns’ failure to make a mark in the Champions League, where they needed a back door rebound after initially being dumped out of the competition by the Democratic Republic of Congo’s AS Vita. I’m of the strongest view that once you accomplish a mission, go to another and prove yourself. The same applies to Khama. He has conquered South Africa. He should now go on to conquer Europe like some predecessors like Shaun Bartlett, Phil Masinga and Benny Marcathy to name just but a few.
It is time to move on and do Ronaldo’s arms-out-stretchedjump- and-spin goal celebration at a
different level.