THE 2016-17 PSL Young Player of the Season, Bidvest Wits’ Phakamani Mahlambi, is hoping that injuries will give him a wide berth next season, as he aims to make an impression.
Mahlambi bagged the accolade at Monday night’s glittering PSL Awards ceremony, beating out Mamelodi Sundowns defender Motjeka Madisha and Golden Arrows midfielder Nduduzo Sibiya.
The youngster walked away with R50 000 for his efforts.
The 19-year-old Mahlambi, who will be jetting off to Portugal for a three-week trial this week, has been battling injury since he made his breakthrough into the top flight in the 2015-16 season.
In his first season the teen sensation suffered a devastating knee injury which ruled him out for nine months.
The career-threatening knee ligament injury saw Mahlambi miss out on being part of the South African Under-23 team that competed at the Rio Olympics in Brazil last August.
After finally recovering, Mahlambi returned to the playing field firing on all cylinders, but was unfortunately unable to complete the past season after suffering yet another injury, this time to his hamstring.
The hamstring injury forced him to withdraw from the Fifa Under-20 World Cup squad that travelled to South Korea in May.
The School of Excellence product scored only 10 goals in 27 league matches in those two injury-plagued seasons for the Students.
The player who hails from Vryheid in KwaZulu-Natal believes this is just the beginning for him and that his best is yet to come. He said: “I’m aiming for bigger things and am willing to work hard to achieve it.
“Being injured is part of the game, I don’t allow it to cloud my mind. I’m just hoping this coming season won’t be like the past two seasons where I struggled due to injury.
“I still have a lot of work to do – I pray I stay injury-free.”
Wits head coach Gavin Hunt confirmed Mahlambi will be going for a trial in Portugal. “He’s going overseas this week. He’s got about a three-week trial before the start of the season and hopefully he makes it,” said the coach.
