Why I struggled at Kaizer Chiefs despite being among highest paid players in SA - Xulu

Bafana Bafana star Siyanda Xulu has opened up about his struggles during his time at Kaizer Chiefs, where he was one of the highest-paid footballers in the country.

The centre-back, who is currently in the Bafana camp for the upcoming 2022 Fifa World Cup qualifiers against Ethiopia, was a high-profile signing when he returned home to join Amakhosi from Russian Premier League side FC Rostov in July 2015.

However, Xulu failed to live up to expectations during his two-year spell with the Soweto giants and he left the club for Maritzburg United in 2017, where he managed to revive his career, before joining his current club, Hapoel Tel Aviv.

The former Mamelodi Sundowns defender thinks that his struggles at Chiefs made him a better player with the likes of Lorenzo Gordinho, Ramahlwe Mphahlele and Erick Mathoho preferred ahead of him.

"If it wasn't for Chiefs I don't think I would have existed even now to be honest to you. That period for me It gave me a reason to be consistent," Xulu told Thomas Mlambo on the Ultimate Sports Show.

"A reason to say whatever happens now you can take another u-turn. You've been challenged before, you learnt to go through it, there is nothing that can take you down.

"I'm only courageous because of the Chiefs experience, that's why I think the treatment was really essential for me and I had to go through that."

The Durban-born player said that the expectations were too high for him as he reflected on his time with the Soweto giants, who had won the PSL title the season before Xulu joined the club and he was seen as a direct replacement for Tefu Mashamaite.

"Coming back from overseas, being one of the highest paid footballers in South Africa as a defender, the expectations that you should deal with. It's something that I wasn't ready for, I wasn't really prepared honestly," he added.

"And coming back home, it was just me getting back on my feet and moving back overseas. So for me not playing, for me not making the first team and for me not even being there, it was a challenge for me because it's something that I've never faced before.

"I don't want to blame anyone else but myself. I think I wasn't giving myself enough credit. Most of the time, I'm kind of protected but I should look in the mirror, I should've done things better."

Xulu has made 33 appearances for Hapoel Tel Aviv in the Israeli Premier League since the start of the 2020/21 season.