When Patrick Tito Maswanganyi signed for Orlando Pirates Football Club from Supersport United, had zero goal to his account with only 4 assists to his name and I made it clear on my analysis of him that goals will come at Bucs based on his quality and that of his teammates especially because Jose Riveiro was always going to allow him express himself freely. Though he had love and hate kind of a relationship with some section of Orlando Pirates, the attacking midfielder continued to show his class whenever given an opportunity by coach Abdeslam Ouaddou this season and one perfect example is when coming off from the bench for his 100th match in the black and white jersey against TTM during the nedbank cup to score and create Sipho Mbule’s goal. That was his 22nd goal and 19th assist in a century of Matches for the 1995 Caf champions league winners.

What really made the playmaker more different from other number 10s was his ability to collect from the back of midfield in his own half and combine with teammates progressing the ball through the thirds. The freedom afforded to him in a free role by Jose Riveiro allowed him to establish himself and earn the hearts of hard to please Orlando Pirates supporters with creativity, goals and technical gestures that made some of the legends be jealous of him and calling him names. While at times he can frustrate by giving away possession cheaply and making silly fouls at times, it’s all part of the package because players of his technical gifts, have so much confidence in them and is also blessed with strong mental attitude. The way he was made a scapegoat whenever the team is not getting required results, would have really drowned but like Makgopa, knew that he won’t be able to change what people think of him except focusing on the pitch to turn his doubters into believers.

With Relebohile Mofokeng currently a leader of the pack in that number 10 role and Tito, Mbule, Dlamini and De Jong stil itching for more minutes in the same position, Maswanganyi’s performance against TTM coming off from the bench showed enduring brilliance of technical skills, finishing capacity and creative attacking solutions to provide for teammates to be trusted enough not to be far away from the bench because his technical arrogance injects more confidence on his teammates. Apart from Makgopa, I don’t think there’s any player at Bucs who has been criticized the most than Tito and had it not been for his mental strength, would have really been down and out. Maswanganyi is expected to play a key role either starting or from the bench against Mamelodi Sundowns FC and Kaizer Chiefs FC in the coming days.