McBeth Mahlangu: Galaxy’s defensive rock
McBeth Mahlangu has become an extremely effective centre-back for his South African team TS Galaxy FC this last season. Despite his young age, Mahlangu was one of the players with the most minutes played during the just-finished DStv Premiership season. Here is more about McBeth Mahlangu and his career so far.
McBeth Mahlangu: Who is he and what career in numbers?
Born on October 11,2001the 22-year-oldMcBeth Mahlangu is a product of the TS Galaxy FC academy and this is the only club he has ever played for so far. Mahlangu made his senior debut for Galaxy during the 2020/21 season when he was only 19.
McBeth Mahlangu – the early years
McBeth Mahlangu moved up the ranks of the Galaxy’s academy before eventually, he made his official senior debut in 2020. His first league appearance occurred on December 06, 2020, in an away game vs Stellenbosch. Mahlangu came off the bench on that occasion and played a solid 53 minutes.
The calm and composed centre-back impressed and he started 21 of the next 24 league games for Galaxy. McBeth Mahlangu played the full 90 minutes in 20 of these 21 starts too. In no time, he became a cornerstone of the backline but then managerial upheave slowed him down.
McBeth Mahlangu – the difficult years
Unfortunately, for the young centre-back his second year as a professional saw his usage decrease dramatically. He was still in the matchday squad for 25 of Galaxy’s 30 premiership matches but change of tactics under the new head coach seriously restricted his use.
Mahlangu played in only 10 games during this season, starting just eight of those. This was a total of 692 minutes. Galaxy had one of the worst defensive records in the league that year and yet Mahlangu was only seen by the new manager as a backup option in defence.
The 2022/23 season was even harder for McBeth Mahlangu under the same manager. Once again, he was part of the matchday squad in 27 of the 30 rounds but started only three times and played in total of 524 minutes with nine of his 12 league appearances off the bench. That said despite his limited use Mahlangu helped his team to four clean sheets in his only 12 league appearances that year. This was one of the many inexplicable managerial decisions that led to change at the help in the summer of 2023 and McBeth Mahlangu was finally given the role almost everyone saw him deserving.
McBeth Mahlangu: Last season’s stats
In his fourth year as a professional, the 2023/24 season, McBeth Mahlangu not only became the cornerstone of TS Galaxy FC in defence but he was one of very few players in the entire league to play every minute of the season – 30 starts in 30 rounds and 2,700 minutes.
Mahlangu became arguably the most formidable defensive force in the DStv Premiership inside his box. His ability to guard various types of strikers with great success, clean up errors from teammates, and pass the ball forward with precision made him the true rock of his team last season.
McBeth Mahlangu led his team to 14 clean sheets in 30 rounds. He played every minute of the campaign as already mentioned and was vital as to why the team with one of the worst scoring records Galaxy secured a top 6 finish. Led by Mahlangu TS Galaxy FC had the fourth-best defensive record in the league, with only 25 goals conceded in 30 rounds.
McBeth Mahlangu proved at age 21-22 that he could become the true leader of a defensive line. Can he grow up to become one of the most dominant centre-backs in the world? Is he ready for the next step in his development? Will there be interest in his services from Europe this summer?