Luke Baartman: Rising Star of Kaizer Chiefs

Luke Baartman is no longer just a promising name on a team sheet. He’s becoming the roar inside FNB Stadium.

The 20-year-old Kaizer Chiefs forward, once tagged as a classic penalty-box number nine, has burst into the 2026/27 Premier Soccer League campaign with a swagger that feels new, yet very deliberate. On Wednesday night, under the lights in Nasrec, he underlined that rise with his first goal of the season in a sharp, controlled 2-0 win over Sekhukhune United.

It felt like a moment. Not because of the finish alone, but because of the journey to get there.

Last season, Baartman’s story at Naturena barely got going. Seven appearances, flashes of potential, but no real run to prove he belonged in the gold and black of the Glamour Boys. Now, under Fernando Da Cruz, the same player looks reborn – and crucially, redefined.

Reinventing a No. 9

Da Cruz has moved Baartman away from the comfort of his traditional central role. The decision raised eyebrows at first; why shift a natural finisher away from the area where he is supposed to be most dangerous?

The coach’s answer is blunt and rooted in the realities of the modern game.

“Modern football now requires players who are able to play in many positions,” Da Cruz said, speaking to FARPost. For him, the days of a striker living exclusively between the posts are fading fast.

For Baartman, that means learning to operate across the front line, drifting wide, dropping into pockets, and reading the game in new ways. “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 key, in his eyes, is not just where Baartman stands on the pitch, but how quickly he understands what the game is asking of him.

“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.”

That tactical shift didn’t come out of nowhere.

Spain tour changes the picture

The Chiefs technical team saw the first signs of this new version of Baartman in Europe. During the club’s high-profile pre-season tour of Spain, he showed more than just the instincts of a poacher.

Against stronger opposition, under different pressures, the staff watched a player who could link play, stretch defences, and carry the ball with purpose. Not just a finisher. A forward with range.

That tour effectively rewrote his role. When the squad returned to South Africa, Da Cruz and his staff had a clearer idea: Baartman would not be boxed in as a specialist. He would be stretched, tested, and trusted to handle more.

Talent, explosiveness – and humility

Technical quality is one thing. Attitude is another. Da Cruz is not hiding his admiration for Baartman’s response to the demands being placed on him.

“It’s a player with good technical qualities and also a player with good explosiveness when he plays football,” he said, highlighting both the sharpness on the ball and the burst that unsettles defenders.

But what seems to impress him most is between the ears.

“He is a young player and, for the moment, he listens to what the coaches ask of him, which is very important to me,” Da Cruz added. That willingness to absorb information, to accept guidance, stands out in a landscape where young players can be seduced early by hype.

“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.”

While the outside noise grows with every strong performance, inside Naturena the message to Baartman is clear: stay grounded, keep learning, keep running.

Managing the rise

The temptation, when a 20-year-old starts to catch fire, is to ride the wave until it crashes. Chiefs are resisting that.

Behind the scenes, the medical and technical teams are already on alert. This season’s schedule is unforgiving. Premier Soccer League fixtures, CAF Confederation Cup commitments, the Carling Knockout, the Nedbank Cup – the matches stack up quickly, and the physical toll can be brutal.

Da Cruz is experienced enough to know what that can do to a young body and a young career.

“As an experienced coach, I know that I cannot ask Luke to perform at a high level throughout the whole season,” he admitted. The plan is not to squeeze every drop out of Baartman now and pay the price later, but to manage his minutes and his workload so he can keep delivering when it matters most.

“Sometimes he will need to recover, so we need to support him at different times of the season.”

For now, though, the legs are fresh, the confidence is rising, and the goals have started to flow. The FNB Stadium crowd has a new favourite to sing for.

If this is Baartman just getting started, what will he look like when the season hits its fiercest stretch?