South Africa has a gem in Pirates’ new star ‘John Wick’ Nemtajela

You know you are doing something right when you are nicknamed John Wick.

This is the reputation rising Orlando Pirates midfielder Masindi Nemtajela crafted while playing in township tournaments, where he showcased his talents before he turned professional with Marumo Gallants last season.

According to Gallants captain and midfielder Edgar ‘Stiga’ Manaka, who worked closely with and mentored Nemtajela, South Africa has a gem with the potential to reach the dizzying levels of Benedict ‘Tso’ Vilakazi, Andile Jali and Isaac Chansa.

Nemtajela impressed coach Abdeslam Ouaddou during the Moroccan’s stint in charge of Gallants last season and they moved together to Pirates where the 24-year-old is establishing himself in a star-studded team boasting plenty of Bafana Bafana and other international players.

Nemtajela is competing for starting places in the Pirates midfield with established players such as Patrick Maswanganyi, Sipho Mbule, Thalente Mbatha and Sihle Ndluli.

At Pirates he is used in different roles, but Manaka said his best position is the box-to-box No 8 role because he has qualities to defend and attack.

“He joined us for a trial like everybody else when we were still in the National First Division and I immediately saw his confidence. He is a modern No 8 who can operate box-to-box,” Manaka said.

“He has a pass in him, he is a crafter and he is a playmaker. He is in the mould of Tso Vilakazi, Andile Jali, Isaac Chansa or Luka Modric.

“The difference is the likes of Vilakazi, Jali and Chansa did it over and over and he is just at the beginning of his career. But he can reach their level if he stays humble and continues to respect the game and work hard.”

Manaka’s sentiments on Nemtajela’s style of play were shared by former Gallants technical director Molefi Ntseki, who called him up to the local-based Bafana squad for this year’s Chan (African Nations Championship) even though he did not play due to passport issues.

“He grew up playing township football with guys like Mduduzi Shabalala and Mfundo Vilakazi at Soweto tournaments. I call him ‘Bull Terrier’ because he has the right attitude,” Ntseki said.

“He has the correct work ethic and he is a highly talented footballer and he is a typical No 8. He is an intelligent player and we need that in this country.

“In the Carling Knockout match against Magesi FC [Pirates’ 2-1 quarterfinal win on Tuesday], he never did anything wrong and he covered for the young midfielder Camren Dansin, who was making his first start.”

Nemtajela is in favour at Pirates, so he is likely to play a major role when Pirates take on Mamelodi Sundowns in the crunch Betway Premiership at Loftus on Saturday.

“I don’t think people have seen his best yet. They have not seen what he is capable of doing with the ball and he also works hard without the ball, and that is what you want from a midfielder,” Ntseki said.

“He is also a quiet and humble boy from humble beginnings and if he continues this way, the sky is the limit. He is someone who likes learning and I used to speak to him a lot at Marumo Gallants.

“He plays with heart, but he must just stay grounded and keep working and take it season by season. He may reach and go over players like Vilakazi, Jali and Chansa.”

Making the final Bafana squad for the Africa Cup of Nations finals in Morocco in December and January is a long shot, but Nemtajela has been named in the preliminary squad for next week’s international friendly against Zambia.

“I saw it coming because he was in the Chan squad even though he didn’t play because of passport issues. If you see him closely at training, you will never leave him out because of his high work rate and quality.

“South Africa has a gem in him. He can vary his game, he can dribble if he needs to and he can tackle and take the ball away from you if he has to. The good thing for him is that Abdeslam saw him here at Marumo with limited resources.

“He has competition in Mbatha, Ndluli, Mbule, Maswanganyi and he is putting Bafana players on the bench. He covers a lot of distance and he charges and pushes the team with him. ”