In the Angolan international, Kaizer Chiefs have secured a quality player who is going to make a massively positive contribution to their quest at returning to the glory days of old. As it is, Miguel already has begun showing just why they brought him to Naturena – his Player-of-the-Match performance in the 3-1 Betway Premiership defeat of AmaZulu midweek, a case in point.
He scored a goal but was also solid in the heart of defence, having also done a stellar job of keeping the Marumo Gallants attackers at bay in Chiefs’ opening match of the season. If his contribution on the field is going to go a long way towards Amakhosi avoiding a 10th season without silverware, it is his leadership skills and outlook of the game as well as life in general that’s going to bring about a huge sense of maturity to the youthful squad.
A well-travelled player who has Europa League and CAF Champions League experience, Miguel endeared himself to the media this week when he dropped a few words of the local language at the beginning of an interview, the Angolan greeting journalists in isiZulu.
“Siyabonga kakhulu (thank you very much),” he said to the pleasant surprise of the newshounds before quickly adding “ngiyaphila” (I am well) to great chuckle. It is the small stuff that tell you much about a person, and that effort that Miguel made to learn those words – and you could tell he knew exactly what they meant as he uttered them in the right context – spoke of the man he is, someone keen to immerse himself in the culture of his new environment. Such people always make a success of their careers.
When he got serious and discussed today’s big clash against champions Mamelodi Sundowns at the FNB Stadium, the maturity was something pretty uncommon in the local game were we are generally treated to sycophantic drivel.
“I have massive respect for Sundowns. They have a talented squad – not only the 11, I mean even the bench. Last year we (Petro de Luanda, his former club) had bad moments with them – at home we played zero-zero. They had a red card but they kept shape, they are very connected because they have been together for a long time,” said Miguel.
Lest you thought he had no faith in his own team, Miguel gave a different context – sans being asked for it.
“But, as Kaizer Chiefs we have something to say also. You know, we are in the middle of a process and we are not thinking on the future but we have to be focused on the present and see what we can do in Saturday’s (today) game. So we will focus on ourselves and not Mamelodi Sundowns.”
He took things a notch further when he spoke about leadership, having been asked if he felt he was the commander of the team following the way he seemed to take charge of things on the pitch.
“I am not trying to be a commander or soldier but trying to make them be commanders themselves because it is much better to have 11 commanders than (if) we have one. And my mission at Kaizer Chiefs is to make all of them to be commanders.
“I don’t need (an) armband, it is just aesthetics. My mission is to be a leader without showing to the people that I am. I have to prove it with results, at training being an example to the youngsters every day. The armband goes to Yusuf (Maart) and I respect him as a captain. He played lot of time for Kaizer Chiefs. I see him as a true leader. I just need everyone to stick together. We need 11 captains because if you have 11 captains it will be easier.”
Against Sundowns this afternoon, Chiefs are definitely going to need 11 leaders on the field if they are to beat the champions. They can be assured that Miguel is one of those.