Maroto arrived at FC Platinum with a reputation of scoring goals as he had scooped the Golden Boot Award in the 2010 soccer season after scoring 22 goals. The previous season, in which his club Gunners won the championship, Maroto had been second to then CAPS United player Nyasha Mushekwi on the scorers’ chart with 19 goals while Mushekwi had 22.
However, he seemed to have lost that goal-scoring touch as he negotiated the winding 6km long Boterekwa road on his way to Zvishavane as he spent the whole of last season twisting his hair while sitting on the bench.
Successive coaches from Benjamin Moyo, Philani Mabhena, Patrick Mandizha and then Rahman Gumbo all overlooked the player resulting in him starting only four games and a couple of substitute appearances scoring only one goal.
“The fun part of football is on the pitch and it does not matter which team you are playing for. What a player needs is game time which I did not get at FC Platinum. “I think moving on is a good idea, but I am still their player having signed a three-year deal last year.
“However, I do not regret ever joining FC Platinum because I came back a better player. Spiritually, I am also stronger because before every game, the team management would bring pastors to help us in prayers.
“I also managed to buy cars and a stand which I would never have dreamt of before I joined the club,” he said. Maroto said he will make up his mind on the next move in the coming few days.
“I signed a three-year contract with FC Platinum, but I guess next season I will be at a team where I will get game time. It is every player’s wish to get game time. I scored only one goal at FC Platinum having started in just four games.
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I feel that if I had played more games, I would have scored quite a number of goals,” said Maroto. He said he is grateful to national team coaches who chose him to be part of the team that went to represent the country at Chan in Sudan where he scored the tournament’s fastest goal in a losing cause against South Africa.
“I still think I am good enough for any premiership side and do not see myself in the lower divisions. My manager is also planning a move for me to go to Egypt for trials with a number of teams there,” he said.
