Kagisho Dikgacoi was one of the most recent South Africa’s representatives in the English Premier League.
He spent eight years playing in England before he returned to SA to rejoin his previous club Golden Arrows where he hung up his boots in 2018 at the age of 33.
Yet, despite achieving a dream most young players have no hope of attaining, Dikgacoi believes that the lack of development that South African youngsters, especially those in rural areas, have to endure, hindered him from reaching greater heights in the EPL.
The former Bafana Bafana star plied his trade at Fulham and Crystal Palace in the top-flight in England before moving to Cardiff City in the Championship.
Donning a jersey of any Premier League team is certainly the dream of every African child. ‘KG’ attained this dream but, in his opinion, not having proper development as a youngster in South Africa when he grew up hindered him from achieving more.
Dikgacoi believes he could have done much better and could achieved much more than what he did. However, Dikgacoi says he is not one to blame others for not getting his talent nurtured at the right time.
“I could have done better here and there had I got proper or better developed. But I’m not going to beat myself up about that,” Dikgacoi told ThisIsFootball.Africa.
“All I can say is I’m proud of what I have done and of what I have achieved.
“Someone from a small town in the Free State where the least is expected of you, no ambitions, nothing but got to play in the Premier League from Golden Arrows.
“Who wouldn’t be proud of that?
“Even though I didn’t play in the final of the UEFA Europa League when we played against Atletico Madrid, it [was] an achievement for me.
“Playing the World Cup, the Confederation Cup, so I feel like had I been developed well, I could have played in bigger teams than the ones that I played for or achieved more than what I achieved.
“But I’m proud of what I’ve done and no one would say, ‘this one had a terrible career’ because they’d be lying to themselves.”
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