Arthur Zwane pulls a 180 on 'lazy' AmaZulu striker - 'He should be treated like Knowledge Musona, your Khama Billiat, like Peter Ndlovu'

The transformation in Arthur Zwane’s public rhetoric regarding Thandolwenkosi Ngwenya has been nothing short of remarkable.

Only three days ago, the AmaZulu tactician was critical of his forward's decision-making following a 1-1 draw against Orlando Pirates at Kings Park Stadium, where he suggested the 23-year-old "sometimes becomes a lazy thinker" after missing several key chances.

Ngwenya, however, has been in scintillating form, racking up five goals and an assist in just four appearances across the Premier Soccer League and MTN8.

This purple patch marks a significant return to fitness for the attacker, who saw his previous season curtailed by a long-term injury in March.

"We will work on Thando. I think last season he was something else," Zwane said.

"Even though the six [league] goals he scored last season, I still say he knows he missed, I don’t know how many one-v-ones, keeper-to-beat," Zwane said, as per FARPost, when discussing the striker's progression.

"He could have easily reached 15 or 16 goals before he got injured.”

Reflecting on their interactions, Zwane added: "I said, ‘Listen, my brother, you are going back there, and you are going to make it, and you are going to do what we are telling you to do whether you like it or not.

"He is a strong boy; he has a strong attitude.

"He went in there, fought, and he even scored a goal.

"You know when you have a player like him who shows hunger.

"He reminds me that he is still young, and he is going to get to the level of the [Knowledge] Musonas.”

Zwane is not shy about the lofty expectations he has set for the former FC Platinum man, demanding that he eventually receives the same reverence as the greatest players in Zimbabwean history.

"I’m his mentor, his coach, and I’m going to push him to that level," the Usuthu boss continued.

Zwane described Ngwenya as a "sniper" who simply needs the right guidance and physical management to become the most feared striker in the country.

“I want Thando, when he goes to Zimbabwe, he should be treated like Musona, your Biliat, like Peter Ndlovu, because he has that potential as a striker.”

Central to Ngwenya’s development will be his ability to stay on the pitch, something that proved difficult during a 2025/26 season marred by injury.

“He can score. He has goals in him.

"He is not yet at his best right now because that injury took him out for a very long time, and he came back a little bit sluggish, but because he has goals in him, he is a sniper. We will work on him,” Zwane added.

"The last thing that can happen to him is for him to get injured," the former Kaizer Chiefs coach concluded.

"So, right now we need to make sure that we protect him and make sure that he is okay and forever fit because he is one player who is always going to score."