Zimbabwean striker Peter Ndlovu opened the door for a multitude of talent from the continent to follow in his footsteps and compete in what is regarded as the world’s best club arena.



Peter Ndlovu holds two pieces of English Premier League history no one can take away from him, even if his achievements are now more than three decades old. 



The Zimbabwean striker, widely regarded as the best footballer his country ever produced, was the first African to play in the newly re- branded English League in August 1992, and a couple of weeks later became the first African to score in the Premier League, effectively opening the door for a multitude of talent from the con- tinent to follow in his footsteps and compete in what is regarded as the world’s best club arena.



These days clubs across England are filled with top African talent as the Premier League has become the most sought-after destination for the world’s top footballers.



The jaw-dropping salaries are the major attraction but also the level of competition and the uniquely fiery atmosphere created at the iconic stadiums across the country.



But when Ndlovu was featuring for Coventry City in England’s top flight in 1992, there were not many Africans around.



He was still a teenager when he moved from Bulawayo, having joined Coventry from his hometown club Highland- ers the year before, and when he came on for John Williams in Coventry’s Premier League away victory at Tottenham Hotspur on August 19, 1992, broke new ground for African footballers.



“I’m sure I was told then, ‘do you know that you’re the first African to play in the Premier League?’ I probably just said ‘ok’ and didn’t give it any more thought,” Ndlovu tells FORBES AFRICA.



He then went one better and became the first African to score in the rebranded English top flight, netting for Coventry in a 2-1 win at Sheffield Wednesday on Septem- ber 2, 1992.



In all, Ndlovu scored 34 Premier League goals – which all came for Coventry – and remains the highest-scoring Zimbabwean in English football but he has long since been surpassed in the all-time list of African marksmen.



Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah leads the way on 159 goals and is still scoring. The Egyptian superstar is sure since to have added more to the impressive tally.



Then there are the likes of Senegal’s Sadio Mane, now playing in Saudi Arabia, on 111 and the Ivorian superstar Didier Drogba with 104 league goals for Chelsea.



Ndlovu is only too pleased those who have come after him have succeeded in raising the bar &#8230; and the profile for players from the continent.



“I’m just so proud of all of them that they have made the Premier League better and we can see that many of the big money players [bought] now are Africans.”


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Since Ndlovu made his debut, more than 300 Africans have followed in his footsteps and competed for Premier League clubs, who are watched by hundreds of millions on television around the globe on a weekly basis.



“What I like about all those that have come after me, you can say they’ve even added value and represented the continent very well,” he says.



“You can see how much the standards have gone up compared to the time when I started. It’s a very good league and we support it all the time.



“Also, with the large number of players playing in the Pre- mier League, as well as all over the other leagues, it shows that Africa is the provider of some of the best players in the world.”



Ndlovu’s 12 years of competing in English football makes him among the more consistent imports. He stayed at Coventry until a £1.6-million move to Birmingham City in 1997 and also played at Huddersfield Town and Sheffield United, while representing Zimbabwe’s national team for 16 years.



“Well, when I went there first it was just like, ‘I’m going to play football’. Then I realized how much it had changed my life, changed my perception about the football, changed the way that I would act.



“It made me a better person, it made me understand what success was all about, what football is all about. And when I started concentrating, I became a better person, not only a better footballer, but a better person in life.”



Ndlovu returned to Africa in 2004, joining Mamelodi Sundowns and then once he hung up his boots, took up a post in the club’s administration.



He was a popular team manager for the ‘Brazilians’ as they won the African Champions League in 2016 and began an unbeaten run of success in South Africa’s own Premiership where they have now won seven successive league titles. Now 51, Ndlovu has reflected with pride on his ground-breaking achievements… and a special place in the record books

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FORBES AFRICA SOCIAL MEDIA

The Zimbabwean Game-Changer In English Football