The past twelve months have been nothing short of extraordinary for teenage Orlando Pirates winger Relebohile Mofokeng, writes Mazola Molefe.

It’s no cliché to use the phrase “a lot can happen in a year” in Orlando Pirates winger Relebohile Mofokeng’s case.

On 4 May 2023, coach José Riveiro threw the teenager in the deep end to hand him his debut for the Soweto giants at Orlando Stadium against Royal AM.

The Spanish mentor later spoke about how this was a DStv Premiership fixture the Buccaneers still needed to win. To understand the magnitude of this decision you have to consider that Riveiro, some would argue, gambled on three points by naming Mofokeng in the starting line-up when the runnersup spot and qualification for the CAF Champions League was still on the line. But the coach said the then 18-yearold was more than ready.

“If I play Rele in the starting 11, understand how important the game is or was for us. I’m not here to give chances. I’m here to win games – help the team to win games – and Rele was in the field to help us to win the game,” Riveiro said after the match.

Mofokeng hasn’t disappointed since and when the 2023/24 season got underway, he’d worked his way into being a regular for Pirates.

And consistency was crucial right through given the erratic nature of young players who often blow hot and cold unless, like in Mofokeng’s scenario, featured often alongside experienced players who can guide them.

It came as no surprise when the youngster caught the eye of English Premier League side Wolverhampton Wanderers towards the tail end of last year and was whisked out of the country for an assessment to see if he could impress.

Yet again, when asked whether Mofokeng was ready to make such a huge jump after barely 12 months as a professional footballer, Riveiro backed the teenager.

“I’m absolutely convinced that he’s ready for whatever is coming. He is the right age – maybe here [in South Africa], it looks like early at 18, but not for me,” the coach explained.

“If you follow the current trends in Europe, 18, 17, 19, 20 – it’s really frequent in top teams to get your first minutes in the first team.”

The rumour mill suggested Wolves would try to push to sign Mofokeng in the January transfer window that would follow, but it is believed the feedback was that the winger wasn’t quite ripe for the English Premiership just yet.

He was also later linked with some interest in Scotland, but nothing further materialised at the time. But that wasn’t to indicate Mofokeng’s quality was being questioned, with Riveiro perhaps happy to continue watching the player grow and develop at Pirates.

“If you have the [required] level, you have the level. In this case, we all know the type of talent that Rele has, and everything is in his hands now to use this opportunity. We are, trust me, more than happy to see Rele in this situation. Hopefully he can make it, and hopefully he’s not the last one,” Riveiro had added.

As if he needed more vindication, Mofokeng was also recently included in the Bafana Bafana preliminary squad for the 2026 World Cup qualifiers against Nigeria and Zimbabwe after more than 35 games for Pirates this past season.