Lazola Maku prioritises Amajita’s Cosafa Cup title defence over club move

Amajita captain Lazola Maku says his priority is helping South Africa retain the Cosafa Cup rather than securing a new club immediately.

The midfielder was released by Betway Premiership side Siwelele at the end of last season and is currently a free agent. He has since had trials and assessments with three Austrian clubs – SV Ried, Wacker Innsbruck and Rapid Vienna – and hopes to find a team after the tournament.

“At the moment, I’m focused on the U20 national team,” Maku said.

South Africa will leave for Mozambique on Thursday, with the tournament scheduled to take place from September 18-27. Amajita have been drawn in Group B alongside Lesotho, Angola and Eswatini.

The competition also serves as a qualifier for next year’s U20 Africa Cup of Nations.

Maku, who was part of the previous U20 squad, said he was ready to use his experience to support the younger players after being appointed captain.

“I would like to thank the coach for appointing me captain,” he said.

“As part of the previous U20 group, I have to help the group by sharing my experiences and lead them to be victorious.”

He believes the squad has developed a positive atmosphere during preparations and that the new players have settled in well.

“The spirit has been good and we are integrating well. We are sharing our experiences with new players, so it’s been good,” Maku said.

He also highlighted the energy within the latest group, while identifying the responsibility of the more experienced members of the squad.

“The new squad is energetic compared with the previously U20. With Takalazi (Mazhamba), (Emile) Witbooi and Kgomotso Madiba and me on the team, the most important thing is to share our experiences with the new guys. Hopefully, we can compete.”

Amajita coach Raymond Mdaka says his side is between 50% and 60% prepared for the tournament.

The team had been together for almost five days, but Mdaka said the squad was only close to full strength earlier in the week. That had limited the time available to work on the team’s immediate requirements.

“We’ve been here for almost five days now. Only earlier this week did we have a team that was almost complete [so] we have tried as much as we could to address immediate areas in terms of where we see ourselves,” said Mdaka.

“It looks better and we are 50% or 60% ready.”

South Africa will begin their campaign against Lesotho at noon on Friday at the Zimpeto Stadium.