Former Downs player says Allende has Lost Shine

With a high price tag comes a responsibility to perform and Booth thinks Allende has dropped off a bit

Former Mamelodi Sundowns defender, Matthew Booth says that Marcelo Allende has lost a bit of his shine after his initial goal on debut against Stellenbosch.

The Chilean forward who joined Downs from Uruguayan club Montevideo City, signed a lucrative five-year contract making him one of the highest earners at Chloorkop.    

“Allende had an excellent start, I think he scored on debut if I’m not mistaken. His first couple of games were fantastic. He was riding on the adrenaline of coming into a new team and wanting to make an impact,” Matthew Booth told ThisIsFootball.Africa

“Since then, he has kind of lost a bit of shine, and that’s probably because some of the younger Sundowns players that play in a similar position have raised their hand. These youngsters have also looked hungrier for playing time than him. With the high number of games coming up next year, rotation will be everything and as one of the most highly paid players at Sundowns he is going to have to meet and compete with a similar hunger to make sure that he becomes a regular in the team.”

The diminutive Allende who started his professional career in the Mexican Primera Division with Necaxa, has so far made 11 appearances in both the DStv Premiership and the MTN 8 Cup. However, he has only managed to bag three goals in all those matches.

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Former Downs player Matthew Booth
Former Downs player Matthew Booth