The currency of any striker is goals in the back of the net, and when you are valued at R38 million, the premium only increases.
But Cape Town City forward Khanyisa Mayo’s value is plunging faster than a Bitcoin crash.
The 24-year-old was the hottest property in the Premiership last season, when his 16 goals saw him finish joint-leading scorer with Peter Shalulile of Mamelodi Sundowns.
Such numbers placed Mayo on Kaizer Chiefs’ hit list for the new season, while champions Sundowns are still keeping tabs on the Bafana Bafana striker despite him extending his contract at City last season.
Don’t count your chickens ...
Coach Eric Tinkler was overjoyed though to keep his star front man, and even proclaimed that he had now set him a target of 20 goals for the new season.
Five matches across all competitions into the new campaign, though, and Mayo has yet to get off the mark.
And it is affecting City’s overall output, with the rest of the forwards, including Darwin Gonzalez, also firing blanks right now.
Overall, City have scored just two goals in their opening four league matches, and they have come in the form of a stoppage-time header from Angolan forward Jo Paciencia and midfielder Taahir Goedeman’s close-range tap-in.
The attacking players need to start pulling their weight, and quickly – starting with Mayo – if City are to avoid playing catch-up like they were forced to last season.
“The biggest issue I have been saying is the final third,” Tinkler told reporters after City slumped to a 1-0 defeat to Sekhukhune United at Athlone Stadium on Wednesday.
“Can I criticise my team for their effort? No, I can’t. Everyone put in a massive shift, and tried to get back in the game.
“Sometimes you just have to show a little bit more control and composure. But at the same time, you know they are going to drop deeper and deeper, and it’s going to be more difficult to break them down.
Take those chances
“Those chances you get, you have to score. You can’t be saying, ‘It’s okay, next one, I’ll hit the target’. It might be the last.
“It bothers me, it bothers him, it bothers all of us,” Tinkler said about Mayo’s goal drought.
“His game is about scoring goals. And we are struggling to do that right now.
“There is anxiety and pressure. He feels the pressure. He knows he was the top goal-scorer. He knows the expectations.
“What I try to do is relieve that pressure. When I talk to him, I tell him don’t force. When you force, it makes it a lot harder. Simplify your game. Show a little bit of calmness. Be patient. It will come.”