Hleza Mofedi: Former Orlando Pirates Star Opens Up How Muti Man Almost Killed Bucs Players

• Former Pirates midfielder Hleza Mofedi disclosed a dangerous incident involving a muti man at a team hotel before a key match
• Mofedi claimed the ritual went badly wrong, describing a terrifying moment that left the players fearing for their lives
• The ex-Pirates star also made a bold claim linking muti to the club's 2002 league title win under coach Roy Barreto

A former Orlando Pirates midfielder has lifted the lid on the club's use of traditional medicine, revealing how a pre-match ritual involving a muti practitioner nearly ended in catastrophe for the players involved.

Hleza Mofedi, who featured for the Buccaneers during their early 2000s era, spoke candidly about the incident in an interview with KickOff, describing a steam-bathing session at a team hotel that spiralled dangerously out of control.

Muti Ritual Goes Wrong at Team Hotel

According to Mofedi, the players had brought in a muti man to perform protective rituals ahead of an important fixture. During the session, the practitioner placed a traditional flat iron, not an electric one, into boiling water, with devastating results.

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"A muti man almost burned us with boiling water at Pirates," Mofedi said. "We were steam bathing besifutha in a hotel."

"This guy put the old iron, the one that is used for ironing clothes, but not the electrical one, the old one. He put the iron in boiling water, and the water erupted like a volcano…we almost died that day. You should have seen when the blanket flew to the ceiling," he added.

The Free State-born midfielder's account paints a vivid picture of the risks some players have been exposed to in pursuit of a competitive edge through traditional practices.

Mofedi Credits Muti for Pirates' 2002 League Title

Beyond the near-tragedy, Mofedi went further by asserting that muti genuinely works, pointing to Pirates' Premier Soccer League title triumph in 2002 as evidence. The championship was claimed under the late coach Roy Barreto, and Mofedi insisted the team's use of traditional medicine that season was no coincidence.

"Yes, it does work," he said when pressed on whether muti is real or merely mythological. "I saw that when we won the league under the late Roy Barreto. We used muti that season."

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The use of muti in South African football has long been a subject of debate, with opinions sharply divided across the continent. Mofedi's remarks are likely to reignite that conversation, particularly given the directness with which he linked traditional practice to on-field success at one of the country's most prominent clubs.

Source: Briefly News