3 years ago
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Already boasting a sports science degree from Tshwane University of Technology (TUT), Mamelodi Sundowns sensation Cassius Mailula, 21, still hopes to study more even with his football career blossoming.
"Credit goes to development coaches for always encouraging us to also focus on our studies because you'll never know where football can take you. It was good that I finished my matric and went to TUT in 2019 and by God's grace I've finished my diploma in sports science. Hopefully, one day I will try to study something,'' Mailula told Bafana Bafana media officer Romy Titus on Tuesday.
Mailula was rewarded with a maiden Bafana call-up on the back of an impressive debut season in the Premiership, where he's scored 14 goals in as many games across all competitions so far. Bafana face Liberia in back-to-back Afcon qualifiers, with the first leg at Orlando Stadium on Friday (6pm). The away leg is next Tuesday in Liberia's capital Monrovia.
The Sundowns ace says the Bafana inclusion caught him by surprise as he was expecting to feature for the Under-23 national team instead. The U-23 are also in camp, preparing to face Congo Brazzaville in two crucial back-to-back CAF U-23 Olympic Qualifiers. The first leg is at Dobsonville Stadium on Thursday (3pm), while the away leg is billed for Massemba-Débat Stadium in Brazzaville on Sunday.
"For me [the Bafana call-up] came as a surprise. I didn't expect to pop up so early at Bafana. I thought that I would actually be in the U-23s. But it was actually good that someone out there could see my hard work,'' noted Mailula.
English (US)