BONGANI MALUNGA
England based Botswana player Renei Batlokwa finally made his first team debut for League One club Southend United last week. Batlokwa made his debut in Southend United’s 3-1 win over Cambridge United last week (Wednesday).
Donning the number 33 jersey, Batlokwa was named in the starting line up and helped Southend to come back from a goal down to win 3-1 at the Roots Hall Stadium. He was also named on the bench this past weekend in the team’s 3-2 defeat against Peterborough this past Saturday.
Southend are situated in the 16th position on the League One standings (the third tier of English football) after seven games in the 2018/2019 season. Their next assignment is an away trip to Shrewsbury on Saturday.
The 20 year old midfielder has been excelling for the team’s youth team for the past few years and he was rewarded with a professional contract last year, although he had been in the coach’s thoughts he never made his debut under previous Phil Brown.
The arrival of former Charlton Athletic defender Chris Powell as the head coach has seen Batlokwa involved in the first team a lot more. Powell is a club legend who knows the value of the youth team and managed to identify Batlokwa and give him a first team chance. The youngster is eligible to play for the Zebras by virtue of birth and has always stated his desire to represent the national team if called up.