Ghana’s Richard Ofori believes the presence of foreign goalkeepers in the PSL helps improve players like Ronwen Williams FILE - Ghana’s Richard Ofori believes the presence of foreign goalkeepers in the PSL helps improve players like Ronwen Williams. Photo: Issouf Sanogo/AFP
Competition from foreigners helps South African goalkeepers like Bafana Bafana captain Ronwen Williams become better players, says AmaZulu’s Richard Ofori.
Speaking on Thursday, Ofori disagreed with Gavin Hunt’s assertion that local goalkeepers in the PSL were being held back by foreigners.
Hunt went as far as to call for the PSL to adopt the same rule as the Egyptian Premier League, which prohibits clubs from signing foreign goalkeepers.
However, Ghana international Ofori saw it differently, and said local goalkeepers were being pushed to become better players by their foreign teammates, and cited the example of Ronwen Williams and his deputy Denis Onyango at Mamelodi Sundowns.
“[They] Improve other goalkeepers as well, if you can see Williams... the time when he was at SuperSport, and now, you will see the changes,” Ofori said, according to iDiski Times.
“Now, he needs to step up his game because Onyango and Co are there, and it helps the country a lot. You can see now he’s one of the best goalkeepers in the world and competing for the Ballon d’Or, it also tells you that sometimes you need the best to beat the best,” said the former Orlando Pirates shotstopper.
“If you compare him to the time when he was at SuperSport and now, you will see a different person and different personality and everything.
“It’s not a debate; you must be the best goalkeeper to play in another country.”
Earlier this week, Hunt said: “It is very difficult if you look at teams; there’s a lot of foreign goalkeepers around maybe the rules have to be changed, or the clubs need to give opportunities to the local goalkeeper if there is [one] available.”
IOL Sport