Bafana Bafana defender Siyabonga Ngezana has bagged a historic achievement in his first season with European side, FCSB. The former Kaizer Chiefs defender and youth product, Ngezana helped his Romanian club to win the league title this season as they were crowned on Saturday.
Ngezana left Chiefs at the start of the current DStv Premiership season and in his debut season in the Romanian Liga I, he has clinched a gold medal. The club formerly known as Steaua Bucaresti, FCSB last won the title nine seasons ago and the 26-year-old Bafana international is delighted.
Ngezana signed a five-year contract with the Romanian giants and hasn’t looked back since. Following a challenging spell in his first month or so, the burly centre-back cemented his place in the starting line-up following the injury of former Tottenham Hotspur and Napoli defender Vlad Chiricheș.
Bafana Star Ngezana Wins Historic League Title
With less than a year since he completed the move, Ngezana has lifted his first-ever league title, as FCSB ended their eight-year trophy drought in the Superliga. After finishing the regular season with 64 points – nine ahead of second-placed Rapid Bucaresti, FCSB has secured the title with three games to spare in the championship playoffs.
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The crown as league champions comes as FCSB beat second-placed Farul Constanta 2-1 on Saturday to wrap up their first league title since 2014/15. Ngezana, who featured 90 minutes in the game, has made 30 appearances in the league season, with his side keeping 14 clean sheets in those games.
Iqraam Rayners Sends Message to Bafana Boss
In other news on Bafana stars, Stellenbosch FC striker Iqraam Rayners smashed five against a shambolic Polokwane City on Saturday night.
Iqraam is the first player to score five goals in the DStv Premiership this season as they cemented their second-place position on the log table.
Moreover, the 28-year-old is the second player in PSL history to score five goals in a league match and the first since James Chamanga for Moroka Swallows when they defeated Platinum Stars 6-2 in 2007.
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At the same time, Rayners becomes the league’s leading top goalscorer with 13 goals as he competes with Lucas Ribeiro and Tshegofatso Mabasa for the award. The Mamelodi Sundowns hitman, Ribeiro and Orlando Pirates talisman, have 11 goals next to their names. Meanwhile, Mabasa has a chance to add to his tally as they will visit Royal AM on Sunday afternoon.
“I think it was just a question of him being in a happy place. You know, the position that he plays as a number nine down the middle, I think at SuperSport United he wasn’t used as an out-and-out striker,” said Stellies boss Steve Barker.
“So, when he came back the way he started, he went through a proper patch for six months and scored goals. He’s a natural goalscorer. You can see that he thinks of what he’s going to do; it’s not just about him taking a shot. You can see that he thinks ‘If I shoot now is going to get blocked so let me try to create a better angle or opportunity’. So he has always had that in him.”
Looking at the CAF Champions League, another Bafana striker Percy Tau has helped Al Ahly to reach the finals of the lucrative club competition. Ahly beat TP Mazembe 3-0 on aggregate and will face off against Esperance of Tunisia to decide who will be the African kings.
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