Kaizer Chiefs’ Parker admires Cristiano Ronaldo’s mental strength

Kaizer Chiefs midfielder Bernard Parker is drawing inspiration from the club Real Madrid, as well Juventus star Cristiano Ronaldo.

This is in the hope of a successful 2019/20 Premier Soccer League (PSL) season restart. The Soweto giants are back in training in preparation for the resumption of the current season which was suspended in March due to the coronavirus pandemic.

If the season is to be completed, Chiefs have eight matches to preserve their PSL lead in their quest for a first league title since 2015.

They are four points ahead of second-placed Mamelodi Sundowns who however enjoy a game in hand.

Parker has stressed on Chiefs adopting the kind of attitude shown by Spanish giants Real Madrid who have put together a seven-match winning streak since La Liga restarted, to topple Barcelona from the top of the table where they are now four points clear.

Also inspiring Parker is Ronaldo’s mentality.

“It’s also noteworthy to see that especially the top sides, who have the best players, seem to perform the best,” Parker told the Kaizer Chiefs official website.

“That says a lot about their mental approach to the game. Look at Real Madrid, who have really been doing great since the restart, thanks to the players’ mental strength.

“It’s nice to see how he [Ronaldo] takes his leadership role seriously. Ronaldo has that winning mentality and it rubs off on his teammates. It’s a lesson for us as well. To be able keep our momentum, we need to be strong mentally. That’s going to be crucial when the league resumes.”

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Chiefs have started training at Naturena ahead of their closest title challengers Sundowns and Parker describes it as “a breath of fresh air.”

“It really feels good to be back at training,” said Parker.

“It’s also great to be with your teammates again. It’s like a breath of fresh air… However, we will take it one step at a time. At present, I am just happy to be back on the field.”