This season is shaping up to be a defining campaign for Mfundo Vilakazi as he continues his progress towards becoming one of the country’s best players. The 20-year-old has been a significant influence in Amakhosi’s bright start to the 2026/27 PSL season and is looking to kick on with his development under new coach, Fernando Da Cruz.

“To open the league with a win was a real confidence booster and we are aiming to be more consistent throughout the season,” he tells www.kaizerchiefs.com, adding, “Personally, I have goals to achieve this season in terms of growth and improvement. Belief in myself and the coach’s strategy, becoming even more of a team player and working even harder to help the team win.”

The prodigiously talented 20-year-old is energised by the positive mood in the Chiefs camp generated by the addition of new faces at Naturena.

“So far, with the new coaching staff and new players, things have gone well,” he says. “Take Langelihle (Phili, new signing), he got man-of-the-match in his first game and scored against (Mamelodi) Sundowns in his second. I played with him at national level so you can see when he scored I was so happy for him, because we go back a long way together, to the U-20 COSAFA qualifiers, the U-20 AFCON and the U-20 World Cup. The new coaches are very good. We trust them and just listen to them and follow their instructions. All in all, I believe we will have a good season.”

Amakhosi were a little unfortunate to drop their first points in the Betway Premiership in their last outing, where Sundowns managed to salvage a draw with a late equaliser, and they go into Wednesday’s clash with Richards Bay with determination to add a further three points to their league tally, which currently sits on seven.

“Richards Bay are a very good team and especially dangerous at home,” ‘Obregado’ admits, “but we are going there with confidence. Our technical team has done its analysis and we have a game plan that we believe will lead us to victory. We are all in a good space and ready for the challenge. We want to build and maintain forward momentum, and that’s how we approach ever game. We know the expectations of our amazing fans and we never want to disappoint our fans.”

The Betway Premiership match between Richards Bay and Kaizer Chiefs at Princess Magogo stadium in KwaMashu kicks off at 19:30 on Wednesday, 26 August.