Khanyisa Mayo opens up on his struggles at Kaizer Chiefs, 'I'm competing with six players'

Kaizer Chiefs have eight forwards in their squad, but are yet to show any improvements upfront.

With a frontline that boasts of names like Glody Lilepo, Etiosa Ighodaro, Khanyisa Mayo, Ashley du Preez, Luke Baartman, Tashreeq Matthews, Flavio da Silva, and Wandile Duba, Amakhosi were expected to be one of the most prolific sides in the Premier Soccer League this season.

The Soweto giants have scored just 16 goals in as many league matches.

One of their forwards, Mayo, has managed just one goal in 11 appearances across all competitions this season. 

“Yeah, definitely [you have not seen the best of me], for now, I’m competing with six other players that are doing well at the moment, and scoring in the games that they get, so for me it’s to be happy for the person that’s playing right now,” Mayo said as per iDiski Times.

“When it’s my time to shine, he will need to be happy for me, now I’m happy for the person in front of goals in this particular for the club.”

Chiefs co-coaches Khalil Ben Youssef and Cedric Kaze have a number of options upfront, but they will opt for strikers they are convinced will give them something in an intense Soweto Derby showdown against Orlando Pirates at FNB Stadium on Saturday. 

Judging from how he has been used in recent games, Mayo is likely to be introduced from the bench, unless the coaches make him a surprise package or Pirates.

“For me, it’s about gathering my thoughts, knowing what I need to do as an individual, and for us to close the gap, we need to get maximum points to close the gap in the title contest,” said Mayo.

“I don’t think we have lost [the league] the game of football is about win, lose, or draw, and we couldn’t get maximum points in certain games that we had to, so it’s a minor setback, and we as players need to say we can catch up with the top three teams in front of us.

“But the focus is now on the game on Saturday, and if we get those three points, it closes the gap to five points.”