AmaZulu head coach Pablo Franco Martin feels he and his team have increased the stock of the club after their first season in charge.
The Spanish-born mentor took charge of the KwaZulu-Natal outfit at the start of the season, and was handed the mandate of getting the club into the top four of the DStv Premiership.
The club had finished the previous season in 12th spot under the guidance of first Romain Folz and thereafter Ayanda Dlamini, only securing top-flight safety on the final day.
After their loss to Golden Arrows in the last game of the season, Usuthu finished the 2023/2024 campaign in 11th place with 36 points, just three more than the last campaign.
Martin’s men blew an opportunity to qualify for next season’s MTN8 cup competition with their loss on the final day.
Reflecting on not only the result but his first season in the country, Martin expressed that although minimal, he felt the club had made progress from when he took over.
“This is football, and sometimes the results are not a reflection of the work we are doing on the pitch, and how we’re trying to develop this club and the people around us,” he said.
“This is also an important part of the process. I think the growth is clear for everyone, and how we’ve increased the value of this club and the players.
“We have three players in the national team provisional squad, which is something that’s never happened in the history of this club.”
Attackers Mlondi Mbanjwa and Tshepang Moremi joined regular Bafana Bafana man Veli Mothwa on the list of Usuthu players on the mind of national team coach Hugo Broos.
The pair have made their breakthroughs this season under Martin, and are now in the reckoning to feature in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers for Bafana next month.
AmaZulu have been at the centre of many controversial officiating discussions this season, something that both Martin and club president Sandile Zungu have admitted to playing a huge part in their collection of points this season.
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However, Martin was honest enough to admit that he and his group had flattered to deceive this season, and unsurprisingly were nowhere near their expectations.
“I think the president today is disappointed the same way I’m disappointed, as well as the fans, players and staff,” he said.
“But from the things we’ve learnt from this journey so far, we can use them to make sure that we make huge improvements going forward.”
The 43-year-old Spanish-born mentor has fully committed himself to the AmaZulu cause. He has also been very vocal in expressing his desire to beef up his squad for next season.
Having missed out on several of his transfer targets at the start of the campaign, Martin has urged AmaZulu to support his plans in the transfer market if they are to avoid a repeat of this season.
“Next season, I’m fully committed, but I also have my expectations because as a coach, I want to achieve things.
“We don’t want to say we finished in 11th and it’s okay, so let’s go for a little bit of improvement because we’ll end up fighting for the top eight next season.”