Former Orlando Pirates striker Zakhele Lepasa says there were moments where it felt he would not overcome his injury that ruled him out for over a year.
Lepasa, 28, has endured a couple of years of mixed fortunes, having gone out on loan to SuperSport United, broke into the Bafana Bafana squad and fired the country to the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations qualification with goals against Liberia and Morocco and helping them to a bronze medal in Ivory Coast.
To starting the 2023/24 season in blistering form with 10 goals in the opening eight games of the season by September 2023, to never scoring again and being ruled out with injury towards the end of that season and the start of the new campaign.
“One thing that would mean a lot to me next season is to be on the field wearing a football jersey and to get the first minutes of the season, it’s something I’m looking forward to after not playing the whole of last season,” Lepasa said.
“I’ve had an injury, it occurred in December, and I only got back the next December, so I only missed the last part of the season and the first part of the season. So, I never felt like I was out for the whole season.
“For me it’s the first time it happened, and it brings a lot of doubt in my football career, in my life, in terms of, can I still be back and do what I can do best, can I get back into the national team and all those goals I set for myself.
“But it’s done nothing more than fuel my hunger after the pain I went through, the sacrifices I had to make in one year, for me to find myself playing football again was not easy – it was close to impossible at some point.
“So, for me to overcome that, I feel I have overcome it. But having to play and seeing myself as a regular on the field again, will surely stamp that.”
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