Khanyisa Mayo reveals motivation behind impressive performance in CR Belouizdad's Caf Champions League match against Orlando Pirates - 'Seeing familiar players fired me up'

CR Belouizdad striker Khanyisa Mayo has shared his motivation behind his impressive performance against Orlando Pirates in the Caf Champions League group stage match on Tuesday.

The top-rated forward was introduced 25 minutes into the game and made a significant impact on his team's performance before netting the Reds' only goal in their 2-1 defeat against the Buccaneers.

Mayo, who hails from Eastern Cape, faced the Sea Robbers before in the PSL. He has now explained why he found it easy to display a remarkable performance against Bucs in Algeria. 

"Yes, I am happy, but it was not my 100% performance, as I’m lacking minutes. I was motivated to play against a team from home, seeing familiar players and a well-known team really fired me up for the game," Mayo told KickOff.com.

"I told myself that no matter when I came on, I had to be ready to give my all and help my team secure maximum points, especially since we were playing at home. Unfortunately, things didn’t go as we planned.

"I need to build my confidence from the last game, focus on the positives, and continue improving my performance. I would estimate I was at around 60%. My fitness is 100%, but I need to fight for more playing time to reach the level of other players who have had more minutes on the field," he explained.

"I'm working on building my confidence so I can deliver consistently. My teammates congratulated me on my first goal," added the former Cape Town City star.

"Even the Pirates players said that my introduction to the game was positive and it changed the whole dynamic of the game. It’s a difficult group but in order to advance you have to win your games."

Mayo chose to join Algeria's Belouizdad in August, despite receiving interest from Kaizer Chiefs and Mamelodi Sundowns while he was still playing for Cape Town City.

In his seven appearances across all competitions this season so far, the South African player has managed to score just one goal for Belouizdad. 

The 26-year-old speedy attacker has been up against tough competition at the Reds, as seasoned former English Premier League star Islam Slimani has been playing ahead of him.

Mayo will be looking forward to getting playing time, staying injury-free, and improving his performance for Belouizdad as he targets a comeback to the Bafana Bafana squad.

The Mthatha-born striker will aim to be in the starting lineup over his competitors when Belouizdad takes on ASO Chlef in a league match on Sunday, December 1.