Former Kaizer Chiefs captain Tefu Mashamaite has opened up about leaving the club in 2015.

Having led the club to a league double, the former defender won the Player of the Season and Footballer of the Season awards. A few weeks after the league triumph, the Limpopo-born ex-footballer left for Sweden.

Lorenz Köhle on the Bettor Pod, the former Chiefs captain said opportunities came after his record-breaking season.

“I don’t regret leaving Chiefs, I think I achieved everything I needed to achieve with Chiefs. Obviously, I wanted to stay but we couldn’t agree on certain things so I decided to spread my wings because there were a lot of opportunities that were on the table for me,” he said.

Former Chiefs captain on biggest regret

Mashamaite though did reveal that his biggest regret was not playing in the Major League Soccer (MLS).

“I always say one of the biggest regrets of my career is not signing for New York City FC. I went for trials there and a contract was put on the table but everything just fell off last minute, that’s when I made my way to Sweden.”

The former Kaizer Chiefs captain only spent one season in Sweden but admits his passion for the game dropped around that time.

“One of the reasons I left as well was because I had a huge injury, I had an operation and that was the first time I heard of the compartment syndrome. Because of the climate on that side, most of the stadiums are artificial so I was not adjusting well. It affected me and during the time, I nearly lost my leg so after recovering, I just decided to go home and tried to prolong my career.”

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