Luke Baartman's Rise in Kaizer Chiefs Choir
Luke Baartman is suddenly the loudest name in the Kaizer Chiefs choir.
Barely into the 2026/27 Premier Soccer League season, the 20-year-old has gone from fringe figure to frontline attraction, his rise under Fernando Da Cruz mirroring the club’s own attempt to reinvent itself.
From forgotten prospect to FNB headline
On Wednesday night at FNB Stadium, Baartman’s surge gathered fresh pace. Chiefs beat Sekhukhune United 2-0, a controlled, professional win, and the young forward finally had his first goal of the new campaign to show for weeks of hard running.
It was a sharp, clinical finish. The kind of moment that used to define him at youth level. But the story now is bigger than a single strike.
This is the same player who, in his debut season with the Glamour Boys, managed only seven appearances. A traditional number nine, parked in the middle, waiting for service that often never came. The league barely noticed him. Chiefs fans hardly got a proper look.
That version of Luke Baartman is gone.
Da Cruz tears up the script
When Baartman arrived from his Urban Warriors days, he carried the tag of an old-school centre-forward. Penalty-box predator. Shoulder of the last defender. Simple, right?
Da Cruz didn’t buy into that simplicity.
“Modern football now requires players who are able to play in many positions,” the Chiefs coach said, speaking to FARPost. That single line explains almost everything about Baartman’s rebirth.
Instead of locking him into the crowded central channel, the new technical team has pushed him into different zones, asking him to stretch defences, drop into pockets, and attack spaces he barely touched before. It’s not a cosmetic tweak. It’s a complete reframing of his job.
“For a young player like Luke Baartman, it’s important to give him different tools to be able to play in different positions,” Da Cruz explained. The message is clear: adapt or get left behind.
The key, in the coach’s eyes, lies between the ears.
“The most important thing for him is to read the game, for example, knowing what to do when he receives the ball in different situations of the game.”
So it’s no longer just about getting on the end of crosses. It’s about understanding when to come short, when to spin in behind, when to drag a centre-back wide to open space for a teammate. Chiefs want a forward who thinks as quickly as he sprints.
Spain tour changes everything
The shift didn’t happen by accident.
On the club’s pre-season tour of Spain, Baartman forced the issue. Against European opposition, the technical team saw a player who could do more than just lurk in the box and wait for chances. He linked play. He pressed with intent. He showed a burst of explosiveness that caught the eye.
In Europe, the staff stopped seeing a specialist finisher and started seeing a modern attacker.
“It’s a player with good technical qualities and also a player with good explosiveness when he plays football,” Da Cruz said. Not just power. Not just pace. Technique and timing wrapped into a 20-year-old who suddenly looked ready for more responsibility.
Talent is one thing. Attitude is everything.
Plenty of young players flash in pre-season and fade when the real pressure hits. Baartman has been fighting that stereotype from the moment the new regime walked in.
Da Cruz keeps circling back to one theme: the kid listens.
“He is a young player and, for the moment, he listens to what the coaches ask of him, which is very important to me,” the coach said. That “for the moment” is telling. It’s both praise and a challenge.
“The most important thing for young players is to listen to what the coach wants, because sometimes young players think that they are experienced. But Luke is very focused and knows what the coach expects from him.”
In a football world where 20-year-olds can be swallowed by early hype, Chiefs have a forward who is still looking up, not looking around. For a club trying to restore its identity, that humility is as valuable as any finish into the top corner.
Managing the storm ahead
The danger now is obvious: overuse.
Baartman is suddenly central to a team fighting on four fronts – the Premier Soccer League, CAF Confederation Cup, Carling Knockout, and Nedbank Cup. The calendar is brutal. The temptation to ride the hot hand is even stronger.
Inside Naturena, the medical and technical teams are on alert. They know what happens when a 20-year-old is asked to carry too much, too soon.
“As an experienced coach, I know that I cannot ask Luke to perform at a high level throughout the whole season,” Da Cruz admitted. It’s a rare public brake on the hype train.
“Sometimes he will need to recover, so we need to support him at different times of the season.”
So Chiefs walk a tightrope: unleash Baartman enough to keep his momentum roaring, but protect him enough to ensure that this is not a one-season burst, but the beginning of a long, defining chapter.
Right now, the FNB crowd sings his name. The real question is how loud that chorus will be when the season reaches its heaviest, most unforgiving stretch.
