Kaizer Chiefs may be building their future from the ground up, and youth coach David Mathebula is leading the charge. The former Amakhosi midfielder has laid out a bold goal: turn young footballers into fully prepared professionals by the time they are 18 to 20.

Speaking to KickOff in an exclusive interview, Mathebula shared his vision for youth development at the club. For him, the job is not just about making talented players. It is about teaching them what it really takes to survive and thrive in professional football.

He believes young players need to leave the development structures with the right mix of skill, tactical awareness, discipline and mentality. The goal is to have them ready to compete in senior football at an early age, and that kind of preparation could be a big deal for a club that is always under pressure to strengthen its first team.

One name getting people excited is 18-year-old Steven "Stevie G" Mendes. He is the kind of emerging talent Chiefs fans would love to see make the jump to the senior side, and he could be one of the first to benefit from Mathebula's approach.

For Chiefs, a steady flow of academy graduates would be a win on several fronts. It would add homegrown talent to the squad and take some pressure off the club's habit of spending big in the transfer market.

Still, breaking into the first team at a club like Chiefs is never easy. Young players need consistency, maturity and the ability to handle the weight of wearing the shirt of one of South Africa's biggest clubs.

So will Stevie G and the rest of the young Amakhosi stars get their chance soon? Let us know in the comments: who is the next academy player you think will make a real impact in the Chiefs first team?

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