Former Orlando Pirates striker Lelo Blaise Mbele has explained why he chooses not to be secretive about his earnings throughout his playing days.
Mbele disclosed how he moved from playing for USD30 at AS Vita in Congo to getting the equivalent of USD1500 at Zulu Royals when he made the switch during the 2004/05 season after being spotted at the Vodacom Challenge.
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The Congolese also gave the detailed figures of what he got in moving to Orlando Pirates in 2005, where his earnings went up to USD5000.
All these while he was still a teenager who went on to USD10 000 per month when he turned 20 in 2007 while playing for Tunisian club Sfaxien.
"After my time at Pirates, I had a lot of teams interested in me from France and Belgium, but Pirates agreed a deal with Sfaxien," Mbele tells KickOff.com.
"Do you know that Sfaxien bought me from Pirates and paid me USD10 000 (approx. R189 000) every month?
"They also gave me USD100 000 (approx. R1,89 million) as signing-on fees, but I was there for six months because I then left for Al Hilal in Saudi Arabia on a USD1 million (R18,9 million) transfer.
"My salary became more than double on what I was getting at Sfaxien.
"Going to Al Hilal Saudi was about money for me and the club.
"I went to Saudi for money before it became fashionable like it has become now with Ronaldo now playing there, while my former club signed Neymar.
"I'm able to talk openly about money issues because I think players need to put all the money that they make into good use.
"In Europe, salaries are not a secret, and players usually invest wisely because they are trained on how to handle finances.
"There are players who I think earned good money in South Africa but made wrong decisions and now they are crying foul about (the fact) that they didn't earn good money.
"Some former players want to hide behind that they never made money, yet they drove the most expensive cars that they don't have anymore.
"As players, we need to be honest about money, but unfortunately a lot of us here on the continent are not.
"We put our money into all the wrong things and choose unsustainable lavish lifestyles, then come back to cry.
"I believe football money must not be a secret because that way it encourages players to be accountable and disciplined.
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"No player would be reckless with money if their earnings were in the public space because if they misuse it, then it will be known by all.
"I'm most grateful to Pirates because I was able to then get money that I was able to use to look after my family," says Mbele.
The retired striker played for top clubs in DR Congo, South Africa, Tunisia, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Libya, Kuwait, Angola, Algeria, Malaysia, Bahrain and also spent time in Turkey.