In the 79th episode of the Arena Sports Show, presenter Clauiee Grace Mpanza and regular guest Mahlatse Mphahlele are joined by respected football coach Augusto Palacios and commentator Sizwe Mabena.
Palacios — who coached Orlando Pirates, where he has also long been involved in Bucs' youth structures; Mamelodi Sundowns and Kaizer Chiefs — focused on his favourite topic of talent identification and youth development.
“There is a lot of talent in South Africa, it just needs to be discovered. I have seen some of the finest talents from rural areas such as Lucas Twala who came from Mbombela to play in the 2010 Fifa World Cup,” the 73-year-old said in a wide-ranging interview.
Palacios, who has been in the country for decades since he arrived from Peru to play for Witbank Black Aces in 1984, spoke about how he was shocked by racial segregation. He described the difficulty of acclimatising to a new country, especially one as troubled as apartheid South Africa.
Upon arrival, he was impressed by the talents of greats of the 1980s such as Jomo Sono, Patrick “Ace” Ntsoelengoe, Mlungisi “Professor” Ngubane and Thomas “Junior” Ngobe, among others.
Palacios is regarded as having nurtured Senzo Meyiwa, Relebohile Mabe, Joseph Makhanya, Benedict Vilakazi, Gift Leremi, Lebohang Mokoena and Lesley Manyathela at Pirates.
He also spoke about his long-standing relationship with figures such as Teboho Moloi, who was his assistant coach at Pirates, and former captain Lucky Lekgwathi.
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