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Johannesburg - Royal Eagles striker Katlego Mphela has finally opened up about his departure from his former team Kaizer Chiefs, six months after leaving the Absa Premiership reigning champions.
After leaving the Phefeni Glamour Boys in July, Chiefs reported that Mphela’s contract was terminated for disciplinary reasons as the striker was missing key events for the club without giving explanations for his absence.
But the former Mamelodi Sundowns forward has admitted that he only missed one event and that was the 2014/15 Premier Soccer League (PSL) awards ceremony due to family bereavements.
Mphela cited that a mutual agreement between the two parties was reached and he was pleased with the decision to leave Naturena due to a lack of regular game time.
“Well, the only event I missed was the 2014/15 PSL awards ceremony because of family commitments," revealed Mphela.
“I did communicate that with the team and maybe there was a misunderstanding between us.
“But at the end we sat down and spoke about it and reached a mutual agreement to part ways.
“And honestly, I was happy to leave the club because I was not getting enough game time.
“It was nothing personal because at my age I wanted to play because where I came from (Sundowns) I was the number one striker.
“And not playing at Chiefs was a bit difficult for me and the guys I was competing with were doing very well, so my chances were very slim.”
At both Chiefs and Sundowns, the Brits born goal poacher was among the highest paid players in the PSL; reportedly earning a net salary of R260 000 per month, but “Killer” has admitted that he had to settle for a huge pay-cut when joining Eagles.
Mphela, 31, said his move to Eagles was not influenced by money but he wanted to revive his career and he is currently enjoying the game once again.
“Joining Eagles was not about money because I had a huge salary cut.”
“But I’m enjoying my football again and that’s what matters most to me.
“Like I said earlier, the team has so many ambitions and we want to achieve our targets.”
