Tottenham Hotspur fans call him ‘The Beast’. In Swahili, Wanyama means animals; to the Luhya tribe to which he belongs, the appellation is more impressively specific – he is ‘the one born when an animal was slaughtered in celebration’. Spurs fans have indeed had much to be thankful for since the Kenyan midfielder’s arrival from Southampton in June 2016.
So far this season, Victor Wanyama has started all of Tottenham’s Premier League fixtures, and is arguably their most dependable asset. A silent enforcer who allows the club’s most creative players to pivot and rotate around him, Wanyama also has a dusting of the artist’s flair so beloved at White Hart Lane. His passing choices are deceptively simple and considered, and he recently demonstrated a hidden depth of slick versatility in Spurs’ January draw at the Etihad, dropping back to center-half when required against a predatory Manchester City side that were ready to profit had he been less assured in his understanding of football’s fluid geometry.
<div id="attachment_4729" style="width: 248px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-4729" class="size-medium wp-image-4729" src="/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/GettyImages-655297348-238x300.jpg" alt="" width="238" height="300" />LONDON, ENGLAND &#8211; MARCH 19: Victor Wanyama of Tottenham Hotspur during the Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur and Southampton at White Hart Lane on March 19, 2017 in London, England. (Photo by Catherine Ivill &#8211; AMA/Getty Images)</div>
Wanyama’s destiny as his country’s most valuable football export was forged in the dusty streets of Nairobi, Kenya’s electric, bustling, intoxicating capital. He attended St Peter’s Claver Primary, in the infamous Landhies Road area in the old center of the city, where matatu drivers, market traders and teeth and skin-whitening peddlers jostle for custom in a chaotic miasma of klaxons and exhaust fumes. His class teacher, Penina Ogony, remembers him as quiet and respectful.
“He didn’t have much to say,” she laughs. “But he was a good boy, and he did well in his final exams. And he was huge for his age, as big as his teacher at the time.”
A few hundred yards up the road nestles Wanyama’s old secondary school, cowering behind the ubiquitous Nairobi construction sites with their laborers’ bellows and Hadean clang of metal on hot metal. Kamukunji is a nursery for the best football talent in the city; gifted young players from the school train a few blocks away at a local estate at dawn before class, with the most promising earmarked early by local Kenyan Premier League teams and allowed by the school to link up with their clubs during class time, provided academic targets are met.
A framed photograph of Wanyama from 2015 – he is addressing beaming Kamukunji students in the school courtyard – is the proud centerpiece on a table of jostling football trophies in the office of the school’s current principal, Patrick Gakung’u.
“Wanyama was very consistent,” he says. “He was able to successfully blend football and classes. That’s difficult, and it’s something we encourage here. And these young players prefer this school because we have that element.”
It’s a delicate balance that can be hard to sustain. The thin line dividing full-blooded enthusiasm and reckless indiscipline is easily crossed, as Kamukunji discovered in 2016 when their goalkeeper’s violent overreaction to a refereeing decision resulted in a two-year ban from all secondary school competitions. Gakung’u is appealing the ban, and argues that a cadre of talented and disciplined youngsters should not have to endure an injurious collective penance. He assembles the players in the school courtyard for a team photograph; they smile shyly in the sunshine as their coach, ‘Leopard’ Ngari, reminisces about a young, unassuming, “very hardworking” Wanyama.
“Although he was talented, he was very humble; you never saw him say no to others,” he says. “When he came back to address the students, he repeated one thing: you have to be focused. We are very proud of him.”
Gakung’u gently encourages current team captain Tom Atieno and attacking midfielder Fiston Nchungu to break from the group for a moment to talk about their aspirations.
“Victor inspired me to play like him,” says Nchungu. “To be disciplined. To play in England, because there is so much competition there.”
His captain favors Arsenal; what odds on these two young men facing off in a future North London derby?
The road to professional success to date has been a narrow and precarious one for a young Kenyan player; relatively few have made it the hallowed ground of a club in a top league overseas. Only eight of the current national team squad currently play outside Africa, and the UK’s strict and unsentimental points system for evaluating a non-EU national’s eligibility for a work permit is punishing on countries with a low FIFA ranking. That climate is evolving fast, however. Kenya has climbed almost 30 places, to 87th, in two years thanks to the appointment of former Glasgow Rangers striker Bobby Williamson as manager in 2014, and the dynamic new approach of the youthful current head coach Stanley Okumbi. In late February, local betting giants SportPesa, sponsors of the Kenyan Premier League and English top-flight club Hull City, sent a squad of 18 of the best young Kenyan players in the country to the UK for a training camp and friendly match against the Premier League side. Wanyama is unlikely to remain the sole Kenyan in the Premier League for long (and many Kenyan fans argue that Liverpool striker Divock Origi, a Belgian international with a Kenyan father, is also flying their flag in the world’s toughest league).
Wanyama’s recent success is even more remarkable, given the scarcity of such opportunities in Kenya a decade ago. His break came when he was scouted by former AFC Leopards coach Edward Manoah while playing in a high school tournament for Kamukunji (Wanyama’s disciplinarian father Noah had been a successful and adored left winger at the club, and ties between the Leopards and the Wanyamas endure).
“He was a striker then, tall for his age,” says Manoah.  “He was strong in the air and could hold the ball up well. He came on in the second half on his Leopards debut – and scored the winner.”
Wanyama’s development was rapid. He earned his first cap for Kenya at 15 years old, and quickly emulated the progress of his older brother McDonald Mariga, another of the Kamukunji ‘golden boys’. Mariga’s talent had been spotted by Swedish lower division side Enköpings SK, and he took quickly to European football, moving to Helsingborgs IF before joining Serie A club Parma, and later Inter Milan, where he became the first Kenyan player to appear in the Champions League.
After short stints at Nairobi City Stars and JMJ Academy, Wanyama at last followed his brother to Helsingborgs. A robust three-year stint at Belgian side Beerschot caught the attention of Celtic, where he became the first Kenyan to score in the Champions League in an emotional win against Barcelona. Mauricio Pochettino, then manager of Southampton, brought him to St Mary’s in 2013, recognizing the qualities of diligence, athleticism and humility that are the hallmarks of the Argentine’s team ethic; the move to Pochettino’s Tottenham in 2016 seems, in retrospect, an inevitability.
It’s January 2017, and a hot, bright morning at Marist University in the leafy Nairobi suburb of Karen, about half an hour outside the city. The AFC Leopards first-team squad is playing a gritty, breathless seven-a-side game on a difficult dusty surface as new head coach Stewart Hall, a seasoned former Birmingham City academy director, observes from the touchline. On an adjacent pitch, the Leopards youth team runs through passing drills as the club’s CEO, Ronald Namai, outlines a positive but realistic future for the next would-be Kenyan superstars.
“This year we have actually promoted four of the youth team, so we are focused on bringing young players through to the senior squad,” he says. “We have constant feedback from schools; if we identify a promising player, we will pay their school fees and they will train with us over the holidays. What we insist is during school days, you must be in school. Otherwise we are not going to allow you to train. You see we have promoted 17 year-old. But when you are 28, 29, you are on your way out. So what are you going to do after that? You need an education.”
For Namai, there is still room in his grounded realism for the promise of some modest success; one of the three Leopards players in the squad traveling to Hull, he insists, will be a Premier League player by 2018.
Hall jogs over while the first team takes a break. He points out Ibrahim Mao, one of the four recent graduates from the youth team. A slender, evasive winger with an intelligent first touch, Mao jumps a tackle and hits a fierce shot hard and early while we watch.
“There’s some real talent in Kenya,” says Hall. “I’m saying to all my players, now listen, there’s a Kenyan playing in England, but also Belgium, Russia, Bulgaria, Sweden, Norway, Denmark. There’s a Kenyan in the MLS in the States. And because of this, the scouts are moving out here and taking kids from here younger and younger.”
He says that fostering the right attitude in these players, a Wanyama-like focus, is now a priority.
“Before, it’s been a case of wanting to be the best in the village, not the best in the country. That’s been a problem.”
His exhausted squad breaks for lunch. There’ll be a second session in the afternoon to hone fitness; the announcement of the league’s opening fixtures is believed to be just days away.
“I’ve said to this lot, if you don’t want to be a serious footballer, I don’t want you at the club. And I’ll chase you away,” he says. “We’ve put in a recruitment strategy that says we want to be the youngest team in the league. And now there’s a hunger here. Everybody here should want to be Wanyama.”

We’ll Follow  The Beast To Hull And Back

The South African economy may be struggling but football remains big business in the country with the Premier Soccer League (PSL) expanding its reach outside of the continent.
The increased pulling power of the league has been more evident over the last 18 months with many high-profile acquisitions by the country’s leading clubs.
The most intriguing of these was the capture by SuperSport United of South African international midfielder Dean Furman, who has grabbed the chance to become part of an ambitious project at the Pretoria club.
At the age of 27, Furman is a player reaching his prime, but instead of pushing to grow his reputation in Europe, he has instead opted for a more lucrative contract in South Africa.
Furman is one of a number of players from outside of Africa that have pledged their future to the South African domestic game. What started as a trickle 18 months ago has turned into something of a rush, at two clubs at least.
The New Zealand international trio of Jeremy Brockie and Michael Boxall (both SuperSport), as well as Kris Bright (Wits) have arrived. As has Australian Isaka Cernak at SuperSport, Portuguese junior international, Jucie Lupeta, and most recently Englishman James Keene, both of whom play at Wits.
And then there is the return to the PSL of experienced defender Bongani Khumalo, to SuperSport for the first half of the season and, since January, Wits. His failure to get a work permit in England was a deciding factor, though there were other offers elsewhere in Europe.
The new arrivals have had varying degrees of success. Cernak and Bright have especially struggled to adapt to the local game, but the rest have added value to their teams.
Furman remains the most high-profile of the new arrivals though, having come through the junior ranks at English giants Chelsea, made his professional debut for top Scottish club Glasgow Rangers and captained his country at an African Nations Cup finals.
Born in Cape Town, his early years were spent in the plush surroundings of Camps Bay before his parents immigrated to England when he was five. Four years later, he was scouted by Chelsea playing for his local club and joined their academy.
His next move involved a future Liverpool manager and a Scottish great.
“I was coming to the end of my apprenticeship at Chelsea and was unsure whether I would be kept on,” says Furman. “Throughout my time at Chelsea, the youth coaches had been really supportive of me. One of them, Brendan Rodgers, had a link at Celtic, which was [former Scotland star] Tommy Burns, and so I spent a week training there.”
“After that I had a week at Glasgow Rangers as well. I really enjoyed both experiences and would have been happy to sign for either club. But Rangers moved faster I guess and I committed to them.”
Furman made his senior debut for his new club in 2008, two years after joining the club, but felt his fortunes lay in England, despite being offered a new contract by the Scottish side and after a successful loan spell at fourth-tier Bradford City, joined Oldham Athletic a division above.
He immediately hit it off with coach Paul Dickov, so much so that he was handed the captaincy of the side for the 2011/12 season, just days past his 23rd birthday, making him the youngest skipper among England’s 92 league clubs for that season.
“I think Paul Dickov could see a bit of himself in me,” says Furman.
At the end of the first season, the captain had moved on and Dickov was looking for someone else to take the leadership role.
“It was a great honor and a great responsibility for me at a young age. But I think that is just the way I am. Whether I am wearing the captain’s armband or not I try and get the best out of my teammates. It is something that comes quite naturally to me.”
A move to Doncaster Rovers would follow, initially on loan and then permanently in 2013 as Furman sought to perform at a higher level.
He did compete in the English Championship with Rovers and did not look out of place, despite their relegation in the 2013/14 season.
He turned down the offer of a new contract at the club at the end of the last campaign and had a trial with Championship club Blackburn Rovers, where he received glowing praise from the club’s management, but who ultimately opted to sign players in other positions they felt needed greater cover.
Furman had long been linked with the South African PSL ever since he made his debut for Bafana Bafana under Gordon Igesund against Brazil in 2012. Now with options to consider on the table, the best of these were from SuperSport United, a club with substantial financial backing and ambition.
“It wasn’t an easy decision, purely based on having to move to another country and the affect that would have on my girlfriend and our families,” he says.
“But [SuperSport CEO] Stan Matthews came over and outlined his vision for the club. I spoke to a lot of people about the team and the PSL and ultimately we decided to experience something new.”
Furman says he and his girlfriend have settled in well and believes there are a number of factors why the PSL is becoming a more attractive league for players from outside the continent.
“The legacy from the [2010] World Cup has really put the spotlight on South African football. And there is some real talent over here with exciting players, so it is great to watch and be involved in. The facilities are world-class too.”
Also, there is no doubt that tougher financial conditions among European clubs means more players will be looking for opportunities outside of the continent.
“There are a lot of really good players scratching around looking for a club. Financially, teams have tightened up so good players have been released to cut wage bills and it is becoming more difficult therefore to win a good contract at a good club because there is so much competition.”
It is for that reason that Furman, while just reaching his prime as a player, is already thinking about life after retirement.
“I have got a couple of properties in the UK and am also doing my dissertation for a sports science degree. Your career ends very early in life and so you need to think about the next 50 years.”
The rude financial health of the PSL should make those 50 years easier for Furman.

Home, hale  And Hearty

Winning the African Champions League title is the biggest milestone any African player can aim for. Nigerian midfielder Onyekachi Okonkwo has won it twice.
Okonkwo is proud of this accomplishment with his club Enyimba.
“I have always been determined to do well for my team. At training, I always work hard on my game to improve as a player. I did very well for Enyimba back home in Nigeria and winning the major trophies with the team was a great feeling,” he says.
The midfield maestro was instrumental in Enyimba’s path to Champions League glory which attracted attention from South African giants Orlando Pirates.
Okonkwo signed for the Buccaneers in the 2004 season and had a successful stint in the lucrative Premier Soccer League (PSL). His high work rate and style of play made him a crowd favorite in South Africa.
“When I came to Orlando Pirates, I was aware that I was joining a big team and a lot was expected from me.”
Although they had high expectations, the passionate fans spurred Okonkwo on.
“It was very encouraging for me while playing in front of those Pirates supporters who were always cheering the team. They were behind us wherever we played and that gave us extra motivation.”
After being a star in the famous black and white colors for two seasons, Tico, as he is affectionately known, went overseas to join FC Zurich in Switzerland. After two seasons in Europe, he left to play for Al Kharitiyath in Qatar and feels that playing overseas helped him grow as a player.
“Even though I played in different countries and experienced different situations, I was very focused. I dealt well with the different circumstances that I was going through and managed to perform well for the team.”
Pirates were aware that Okonkwo was still a valuable player and enticed him back to the club in 2012. It was a move that was easy for the player.
“Coming back to South Africa and rejoining Pirates was good for me because the standard of soccer in the PSL is good. The league is professionally run and there are fine soccer facilities.”
“It feels good when people recognize that I did well for the team whenever I got the opportunity to play for Pirates,” he says.
Okonkwo signed for Mpumalanga Black Aces last season, helping the team qualify for the MTN8, a tournament that features the top eight teams in the PSL. He is determined to reward the club’s supporters by winning a major trophy this season. Aces have signed other top players which leaves Okonkwo confident that they will have an even better season.
“I am a very ambitious person and my aim is to win one of the trophies with Aces this season,” he says.
With his successful track record, it would take a brave man to bet against him.

African, Football, Cup Up Aces’ Sleeve

From the deep well of Africa springs forth a steady stream of talent. In Europe, these shining African stars, with quick boots and level heads, dazzle the world.
Certainly it is much easier for youngsters these days. When I went over to Belgium, in the mid-1980s, I felt like a pioneer.
Now it is commonplace to find a player from Africa in every major league. That is great for the development of the game on the continent.
There are a number of young stars from Africa who are set to shake up the world this season.
These are my super six from Africa.
<div id="attachment_2153" style="width: 225px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-2153" class="size-medium wp-image-2153" src="/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/174562576_10-215x300.jpg" alt="" width="215" height="300" />VILLACH, AUSTRIA &#8211; JULY 27: Victor Wanyama of Southampton and Veli Kavlak of Bestikas compete for the ball during the preseason friendly match between Southampton FC and Besiktas Istanbul at Stadion Villach on July 27, 2013 in Villach, Austria. (Photo by Sebastian Patter/Getty Images)</div>
Egyptian striker Mohamed Salah looks as though he has all the attributes to be a top international striker. He has scored 15 goals in 21 starts for Egypt and is joint top-scorer in the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifiers as they enter the final round of group matches this month. The striker plays for FC Basel in Switzerland, but is being tracked by a number of top European teams. His reputation was enhanced when he was named CAF’s Most Promising African Talent of the Year for 2012.
Then there is Kenyan midfielder, Victor Wanyama, who signed for English top-flight side Southampton. He was at Glasgow Celtic last season and scored the winning goal against Barcelona in the UEFA Champions League. That is some way to announce your talent to the world and I think he could eventually take the English Premier League by storm. It will be a tough transition for him in a league were the football is played at 100 miles per hour. His previous stints in Sweden, Belgium and Scotland will have done little to prepare him for that, but if he is given the right support by the coaching staff and time to adapt by the fans, he could be a real hit.
Wanyama will join Zambian Emmanuel Mayuka, who had a slow start to his career at Southampton last season. I believe Mayuka, if given the chance, could make his name in England this season. His record at Young Boys in Switzerland, where he scored 32 goals in 55 games, was simply outstanding. Quality always shines through.
Richmond Boakye, who was born in Agogo, in Ashanti, and began his career with Bechem United, is an international for Ghana. He is a star of the side that finished third at the FIFA Under-20 World Cup in Turkey. He is worth an estimated €6 million and is likely to play quite a few games for Juventus this season. It is likely to be tough for Boakye to break into a side that has won the Serie A title in Italy for the last two seasons, but he does offer an alternative to the other forwards: Carlos Tévez, Fernando Llorente and Fabio Quagliarella. Don’t expect him to feature right away, but as the season wears on he should get his chance.
Boakye’s teammate in the Ghana junior set-up, Ebenezer Assifuah, was top scorer at the Under-20 World Cup with six goals and it will be interesting to see how his career progresses. He is still playing at home in Dansoman, Accra, with Liberty Professionals, but surely not for long.
<div id="attachment_2152" style="width: 240px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-2152" class="size-medium wp-image-2152" src="/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/171690519_10-230x300.jpg" alt="" width="230" height="300" />KAYSERI, TURKEY &#8211; JUNE 27: Ebenezer Assifuah of Ghana (L) in action during the FIFA U-20 World Cup Group A match between Ghana and USA at Kadir Has Stadium on June 27, 2013 in Kayseri, Turkey. (Photo by Steve Bardens-FIFA/FIFA via Getty Images)</div>
Nigerian defender Kenneth Omeruo, born in Kaduna, showed that he is a star in the making at the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations, earlier this year, followed by fine showings at the FIFA Confederations Cup in June. He will return to his club, Chelsea, this season after spending last term on loan at Dutch Eredivisie side ADO Den Haag. Here, he could slot into the right-back position.
Looking beyond the African continent, there are a number of young stars who could become global icons this season.
Neymar da Silva Santos Júnior, a superstar at home in Brazil, will test his ability at Barcelona. The FIFA Confederations Cup confirmed his status as arguably the biggest young talent on the planet. His next challenge is to form a partnership with Lionel Messi, a player with whom he is compared. I think it will be exciting to see them play together.
Stephan El Shaarawy, who has an Egyptian father and Italian mother, revealed himself to be a star in the making at AC Milan last season and broke into the Italian national team. In Italy, they view him as the next Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo. Again, time will tell.
Mario Goetze’s move from Borussia Dortmund to Bayern Munich is a top purchase from the European champions and he should find a coach in Pep Guardiola, who will appreciate his playmaking skills.
Bayern paid €37 million (R4.9 million) for his services, making him the most expensive German player ever, but it could be money well spent on the winger, aged 21, who has years of improvement ahead of him.
Isco, who was signed by Real Madrid from Malaga in the last transfer window, is a player in the mold of Andres Iniesta and arguably the hottest property in Spanish football at the moment. He has made his debut for the senior national side and at Real Madrid. They believe he can have the same impact as the great Zinedine Zidane.
All of these are young players with great promise, but in truth they have achieved nothing yet and it is only with hard work and discipline that they will truly reach their potential.
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Football history is littered with stories of great youngsters who showed prodigious talent in their late teens, but fell by the way side by becoming more interested in what happened off the pitch, rather than concentrating on their career on it. As each year goes by, the standard of the game is improving. The current generation of players certainly have a lot a lot of responsibility on their young shoulders. Responsibility to maintain and enhance the beauty of the beautiful game.

A Dozen African Feet, Ready To Shake The World

The house in Mbalenhle Avenue, Secunda, in Mpumalanga, is a monument to May Mahlangu’s maternal grandmother, Joanna. She brought up the football star and his younger brother, Bafana, after they were orphaned.
“It was a tough time, and it builds your character. There is no one to look up to—no mother or father to advise you. My grandmother was there to inspire us. She told us that nothing comes easy. You have to work very hard to be successful,” says Mahlangu.
Mahlangu built the house for his grandmother after glory at the Africa Cup of Nations in January.
In this tournament, Mahlangu grew into one of Africa’s most exciting attacking midfielders since Steven Pienaar. His equalizer against Morocco ensured his country safe passage to the quarter-finals.
“I dedicated that goal to her and I am happy she saw me scoring that goal. She raised me from an early age and I would not be here if it were not for her. She also allowed me to join Remember FC in Secunda, at age 12, and Stars of Africa Football Academy at 15. I owe her my life as a professional soccer player,” says Mahlangu.
Teko Modise was another pivotal figure in Mahlangu’s life; he inspired Mahlangu to pursue football professionally.
“I always watched him, while he played for Orlando Pirates, Sundowns and Bafana. He was my childhood hero,” says Mahlangu.
For the past two seasons, Mahlangu, a Bafana Bafana midfielder, has been linked with several top European clubs, but his Swedish side Helsingborg IF has managed to hold on to him. The 2011 Swedish Player of the Year has been a revelation for South Africa during the past six months.
Gavin Hunt, former coach of SuperSport United, considers him and Dean Furman to be the best midfield-combination for the national team.
Boebie Solomons—a former Bafana Bafana under 20 coach and current assistant coach at Bloemfontein Celtic—agrees.
“May and Dean have been the biggest difference between the current Bafana Bafana team and the national group under its predecessor Pitso Mosimane. Take those two players away, and we are back at square one.”
David Nyathi, current under 19 coach at Ajax Cape Town and former Bafana Bafana stalwart, adds  Reneilwe Letsholonyane to the mix, calling the three midfielders: “a pleasing triangle”.
Farouk Khan, director of the Stars of Africa Football Academy, says Furman plays the defensive role as midfielder, while Mahlangu is the offensive spark, with Letsholonyane excelling as distributor and organizer.
Khan saw Mahlangu evolve at the academy, when the young 15-year-old player joined. Mahlangu’s speed and endurance made him the best amongst the academy’s intake at the time.
“His bleep test [or 20 meter shuttle run test to estimate an athlete’s maximum oxygen intake] was a 16 or 17,” says Khan.
Solomons says Mahlangu’s awareness and vision separate him from the rest.
“He has the ability to determine, almost immediately, when he receives the ball, whether to counterattack and initiate a speedy build-up with turn over possession to release the strikers, or not. He can keep the ball glued to his feet while looking up, almost like a Zinedine Zidane. May is a three-in-one player: an initiator, a participator and a finisher,” he says.
Mahlangu must still improve his final pass, according to Hunt.
Lucas Radebe, former Bafana Bafana captain, says that Mahlangu is not a total player until he improves the defensive side of the game.
No player becomes a part of the elite without pain and some luck. Mahlangu has to survive setbacks and injuries for years if he is to become one of the greats.
“What impressed me about May, is his character. He is a born leader, with no fear of failure, with self-belief, confidence and a coachable spirit. He is the epitome of a complete modern-day footballer,” says Khan.
Mahlangu has already overcome tragedy and poverty—surely he can take anything life throws at him.

Tag: Midfielder

FORBES AFRICA SOCIAL MEDIA

We’ll Follow The Beast To Hull And Back

Home, hale And Hearty

African, Football, Cup Up Aces’ Sleeve

A Dozen African Feet, Ready To Shake The World

MAY TALENT TRIUMPH