South Africa is known for many things, and one of them is having one of the highest rates of father absence in the world. Sadly, Lazola Maku, a SA U20 national team player and Afcon champion, happens to be one of those children and is part of that statistic.
However, as sad as it may be, Maku did not allow the void left by his absent father to get in the way of his success as he has etched his name in the history books of SA football with Amajita, and boasts a U20 African Cup of Nations gold medal.
The 18-year-old was born in Westlake, Cape Town, but a place he calls home is a small town called Qumbu, situated in the OR Tambo District Municipality in Eastern Cape.
“I was raised by my mother and grandmother. I am who I am today because of them. Unfortunately, my father was not present; I don’t know him even today, but it’s fine,” Maku opened up to Sunday World recently.
“But for me, this is very emotional because my mother had to play two roles and fill in that void left by my father. However, that only encouraged me to be a good boy at home and continue working hard in chasing my dreams.
“I also have a younger brother, and because I saw how my mother raised me, I hope to be able to support him and be that male role model that he needs one day.”
Throughout the Afcon in Egypt, Maku grew to become one of Raymond Mdaka’s trusted soldiers and played a key role in the middle of the park, which earned him a spot in the Best starting 11 of the competition.
“The passion and fighting spirit that everyone saw all comes from home. I was told that, in isiXhosa, Lazola, sijonge wena ngoku (Lazola, we are now counting on you) because this, according to them, was a big chance to make a name for myself and put the Maku family on the map.
“So, I went to Egypt knowing that performing well and winning the competition would contribute towards my dream of playing in Europe one day and helping my family.”
The SuperSport United Diski Challenge dynamite has since adopted the nickname of 2018 Fifa World Cup winner, N’Golo Kanté, solely for his height, work rate, tireless running in the field of play, and technical ability.
“They call me Kanté because of my work rate in the field, because I run a lot, and don’t allow the taller or bigger players to bully me,” Maku said.
Maku is currently completing his Grade 12 at Noordwyk Secondary School in Midrand.
