Thapelo Maseko’s passion flickers as Mamelodi Sundowns snub deepens

Mamelodi Sundowns winger Thapelo Maseko has delivered a raw and emotional account of his current struggles, admitting that his passion for football is fading as he battles for relevance at Chloorkop.

The 21-year-old has found himself on the fringes of coach Miguel Cardoso’s plans, with his future at the Betway Premiership champions now under intense speculation. Last season, Maseko made just 14 appearances across all competitions, finding the net only once. 

His omission from the squad for the 2025 Fifa Club World Cup in the USA fuelled further questions over his role at the club. For a player once tipped as one of South Africa’s brightest prospects, the fall has been swift. 

Maseko joined Sundowns in 2023 from Tshwane rivals SuperSport United after lighting up the DStv Diski Challenge and breaking into Matsatsantsa’s first team, where he featured 34 times, scored four goals, and chipped in with two assists. 

The move that was supposed to elevate his career has instead left him fighting for game time — and now, it seems, fighting for his love of the game.

His absence from Sundowns’ first two matches of the new season — the MTN8 quarter-final and their Betway Premiership opener — has only deepened the sense that he is on the periphery. And on Monday, the Bafana Bafana international took to Instagram to voice his pain in a heartfelt post.

“I don’t know when it started, but lately it’s like the fire in me is fading. I still train like my life depends on it, still push through every tired muscle, mental battle, but inside it feels empty,” Maseko wrote.

“The game that once lit up my soul is now different, heavier, and colder. It’s a strange kind of pain, giving everything you have but feeling unseen.

"You tell yourself to keep going, but each day chips away at you. Your confidence starts to crumble, your joy fades, and the person you used to be feels like a memory you can’t reach anymore.

“The hunger, the excitement, and the love for the grind have been slipping away piece by piece, now hope feels like something far off in the distance.

“I’m left wondering if I’ll ever get to that place again. This is what it’s like to lose your spark, and the hardest part is still showing up every single day, hoping you’ll find it again.”

For Sundowns fans, it’s a sobering glimpse into the human side of elite football — where talent alone cannot shield a player from the loneliness of being on the margins. For Maseko, the fight to rediscover his spark now seems as important as the battle for minutes on the pitch.