Mamelodi Sundowns captain Hlompho Kekana is set to leave the club. Teammate to Kekana for many years, Wayne Arendse has said that the outgoing captain played a vital role behind the scenes at the club.
The 36-year-old Arendse was at the Chloorkop for eight years, where he had the opportunity of spending the same dressing room with Kekana. The club recently announced that their captain would be leaving after a decade of service to the club. The club, in its statement, extolled the virtues of their veteran skipper.
Arendse, who also played alongside Kekana, was effusive with words for the departing captain.
He called him a nice guy and the kind of guy every team should have in the dressing room and on the pitch. According to Arendse, he was a good teammate.
Speaking in a recent interview, Arendse claims his release from Mamelodi Sundowns is a loss for the team because of the wealth of experience he carries. Arendse said that his service to Sundowns is a testament to his importance at the club. He reiterated that the club should have retained him to pass on some of that experience to the younger guys.
Arendse continued by stressing his experience at the PSL club, citing the number of years he has spent at the club. He praised his work as the captain of the team and claimed his record speaks volumes.
Arendse wants the club to keep him around as he is a positive influence within the ranks. He said he had a strong personality on and off the pitch and always had a joke to lighten situations and wonders why the club can’t keep him within its structures.
“He’s been there and done it and has been in the Champions League and won it.
“All players can’t approach a coach. Sometimes a player feels more comfortable speaking to a fellow player. So it’s always good for a player with Hlompho’s calibre to be at a club.