Orlando Pirates coach Jose Riveiro believes young sensation Relebohile Mofokeng has the world at his feet and has advised the Bucs star to be responsible for his professionalism and dedication throughout his career. 

The 20-year-old starlet has been one of Riveiro’s trusted allies since making his first-team debut against Royal AM towards the end of the 2022/23 season following explosive performances for the DStv Diski Challenge side. Mofokeng has since made over 50 appearances for Pirates, including scoring in two domestic finals – a last-gasp winner in the Nedbank Cup at the expense of Mamelodi Sundowns followed by another goal in the MTN8 against Stellenbosch FC last month. 

In this ongoing campaign, the School of Excellence product picked up where he left off last season, having already scored four goals and provided five assists across all competitions, much to the delight of the Spanish mentor. 

“I don’t think there’s anyone who’s still surprised about Relebohile’s performances, he’s in a good moment like the rest of the team, they are confident right now, to play their football and express themselves, ” said Riveiro. 

“What we provide to the players as coaches is the structure, the right space for them to express themselves, to execute and show their skills. The players’ confidence is due to playing consistently, to give them responsibilities more than nice words when they play or don’t play. 

“But in our case, every player upfront in this team is talented with the capacity to do and create a lot of problems for the opponents and Rele is one of the cases. Riveiro expressed immense confidence in Mofokeng’s talent and potential to reach even greater heights but has urged the youngster to remain grounded and maintain his professional stature as he backs him to succeed in the long term. 

“How far [can he go]? At 19,20,21,18 and 17 years old with that level of talent, the future belongs to you, it’s about many things but the young players must control what they can control which is the things that they do, how professional and dedicated they are in their lives, ” said the Pirates coach. 

“Nowadays in modern football, to be at a certain level you need to be a professional football player 24 hours per day, which is not enough with the time that they spend with us [at camp], it goes beyond, and I think that’s one of the crucial parts for these young talents to take seriously. 

“He [Mofokeng] is doing everything to make it happen, so it’s about timing opportunity, have a pinch of luck also in your career, but in the end, the football will put you in the place that you deserve. Mofokeng’s meteoric rise caught the eye of Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos, who handed the then-teenager a maiden national team call-up in the AFCON qualifiers back in June against Zimbabwe.