Linda Mntambo praises ‘Tito’ Maswanganyi for staying true to kasi flavour at Pirates

Former Orlando Pirates player Linda Mntambo has paid tribute to departed midfielder Patrick ‘Tito’ Maswanganyi for not bowing to pressure and sticking to his kasi flavour style.

Maswanganyi, who has left Pirates to join Bahraini Premier League side Al-Khaldiya SC, divided opinion because of his penchant for showboating.

Asked to reflect on Maswanganyi’s time at the club, where he won one league title and numerous cup competitions, Mntambo said the playmaker leaves with his head held high for the contribution he made and staying true to himself.

“He brought kasi flavour, something some of us had to let go during our days. Some of us were dribblers but when we turned professional we had to tweak our game and leave a lot of the flair out,” said Mntambo.

Linda Mntambo says Patrick 'Tito' Maswanganyi brought 'kasi flavour' to Pirates. pic.twitter.com/eq1sA1F51p

“It stayed with him and that shows how true he was to himself by not changing how he played and what made him tick. With that, he must be applauded because few players get to Orlando Pirates and [manage to] keep to who they are.

“You will have to go back to players like Thabo Rakgale, Thabo Qalinge and Khethokwakhe Masuku. All those players faced criticism but he [Maswanganyi] continued and stuck to how he plays football.

“He understood that he makes the team tick; when the team is low he is the one to climb on top of the ball. Fans don’t necessarily understand what that does to your teammates and the opponents.

“It intimidates opponents and gets the fans going and loud and gets your teammates on the front foot.”

Most of the time people mistake him for being arrogance but it goes with the confidence he has.

“He has done incredibly well for himself and he can be proud of the time he spent at Pirates. Tito was one of my favourite players at Pirates and I loved his arrogance and aggression on the field.

“Most of the time people mistake him for being arrogant but it goes with the confidence he has. In life, too much confidence is sometimes mistaken for arrogance.

“He stamped his authority, made a mark for himself and the fans showed in the game against Sekhukhune United [Pirates’ 2-0 Premiership win at Orlando Stadium on Wednesday night where supporters showed a placard in appreciation of Maswanganyi] that they appreciate him.

“If he didn’t know that Pirates supporters love him, he could see from wherever he was watching that he meant a lot to them.