Orlando Pirates teenager Mpho Padime says flair is part of his game

Orlando Pirates midfielder Mpho Padime says expressing himself on the pitch comes naturally, despite coach Abdeslam Ouaddou’s opposition to showboating.

Ouaddou has warned that such behaviour will not be tolerated at the Buccaneers and said he would leave if players chose tricks over the pursuit of more goals.

Padime accepts he must follow the coach’s instructions, but says his style has been shaped by where he grew up and the football he watched there.

“I would love to change, but sometimes where you grew up [influences] some of the things [you do] when you are on the field. It [just] happens and I grew up watching those things most of the time,” Padime told the media during SA U/23 training in Pretoria on Tuesday.

“I didn’t grow up watching European football most of the time; I grew up in Kasi (township), watching guys there dribbling.

“When I’m on the field sometimes, I don’t do it on purpose; it is something that just happens.”

The 19-year-old made his senior debut for Orlando Pirates on August 29, coming on as a substitute in a 3-0 MTN8 win over Sekhukhune United.

He has also been praised by former Pirates player Relebohile Mofokeng, who said Padime had immense talent and could be even better than him if he developed a more productive mindset.

Padime says the past few months have been encouraging, with those around him urging him to maintain his work-rate.

“The last few months have been very good and I’m very happy. People around me have been pushing me to continue to work hard,” he said.

He described Mofokeng as a close source of guidance and said the pair regularly speak.

“We all know Rele is a good person, he always gives me advice every time I speak to him. He guides me because he is older than me. I want to see myself where he is, we speak a lot. He is like my brother.

“Seeing [him] playing overseas motivates me, and when we were in the Netherlands with DDC [DStv Diski Challenge] he came to visit us, and I spoke to him for a while before we left.

“I asked him how he was able to gel so fast in Belgium, as you are coming from SA and you don’t know anyone.

“He said it’s all about hard work and to continue with what he was doing here in SA.”

Padime is now preparing for international duty with the SA U/23 team, who will face Algeria in consecutive friendlies in Bloemfontein on Thursday and Sunday.

The matches form part of the team’s preparations for the Olympic qualifiers.