After Orlando Pirates midfielder Makhehlene Makhaula won Midfielder of the Season award, former Pirates midfielder Xola Mlambo weighed in on Makhaula upsetting Teboho Mokoena and Marcelo Allende.
Makhaula had stiff competition for the Betway Premiership Midfielder of the Season, alongside the Mamelodi Sundowns duo of Mokoena and Allende.
Mokoena featured in 22 league games, with two goals and three assists, Allende played 24 matches, with two goals and four assists while Makhaula competed in 22 matches and had only one goal.
Defensive midfielders are hardly rewarded for their hard work the award given to the former AmaZulu midfielder set tongues wagging.
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Mlambo, however, who has played with Makhaula at Usuthu, has suggested an area of improvement that made the 35-year-old deserve the award.
"He has been an unsung hero for Pirates, when Pirates plays and there's (Makhaula) there, you might not see him but when he's not there you will see his absence, because he does a lot of dirty jobs, he makes sure there's stability," Mlambo said on Switch On Network YouTube Channel.
"He's the spine. His contribution in winning the balls... And I saw something different about 'Cass' (Makhaula) last season, I played with him, not that I'm bias. I saw Cass going inside the opponents box, trying to create goals.
"For a destroyer, it says a lot. It definitely shows age is just a number. If a person has been given an opportunity and he's saying I'm grabbing the opportunity with both hands. I don't think a lot of people expected Makhaula to be a starter when he went to Pirates but look at what he did," Mlambo insisted.
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The judging panel for Midfielder of the Season award consisted of analysts as well as journalists.
