MOGAMAD ALLIE: Teen prodigy Mabena lives up to his billing with dazzling goal

Remember the name Siyabonga Mabena. The 16-year-old prodigy introduced himself to those football followers around the world that didn’t already know about his superb skills with a world-class individually crafted goal for SA in their under-17 Africa Cup Nations group game against Nigeria on Saturday.   

Collecting the ball just inside the Nigerian half, the stocky attacker slalomed past three stunned Golden Eaglets defenders as if they were cardboard cutouts on the training ground. Then he showed great composure to smash a coolly taken shot that cannoned over the goalline off the underside of the crossbar to give Amajimbos a 2-1 lead on the stroke of halftime.  

Duncan Crowie’s side lost 3-2 after surrendering the lead twice in a closely fought encounter against the five-time U-17 world champions.

Amajimbos were still able to book a place in Wednesday’s quarterfinals as one of the two best third-placed finishers in the three groups.  

They meet Group A winners Senegal at the Nelson Mandela Stadium in Algiers on Wednesday (kickoff 6pm SA time) hoping for a bit of Madiba magic against a team that won all three of their games thus far in the tournament.  

The winners, with the other three semifinalists, will book a place at the U-17 World Cup due to start at the end of November at a venue to be decided after Peru’s hosting rights were withdrawn by Fifa due to inadequate infrastructure.  

One player who will no doubt be closely watched by the Senegalese is Mabena who has already attracted the attention of many of the scouts sent by top European clubs to monitor the next generation of young African footballing talent on display at the biennial tournament in Algeria.  

Bear hug

It speaks volumes about the impact of the Amajimbos attacker’s performance that he was a popular choice for the game’s most valuable player award in the game against Nigeria despite finishing on the losing side. 

In fact, former Super Eagles international Nduka Ugbade, coach of his country’s U-17 side, was moved to give Mabena a huge bear hug after the game, telling the Mamelodi Sundowns attacker: “You have a very bright future in football, allow me to hug you please”. 

“It was a tough match because SA is a good team and they gave us a tough time. They have three players that are really good; [Siyabonga] Mabena, [Vicky] Mkhawana and [Michael] Dokunmu. They are very talented players and I was scared of them at first,” Ugbade admitted at the postmatch media conference.  

It is refreshing to see that Mabena, who turned 16 in February, has already been gradually introduced to the rigours of Premiership football by Sundowns coach Rhulani Mokwena.

The teenager, a product of the renowned School of Excellence that includes Steven Pienaar, Keagan Dolly, Masilo Modubi and Daine Klate among its alumni, was given his first taste of topflight football in the second half of their league clash against Royal AM on March 14. He subsequently made cameo appearances against Cape Town City and Golden Arrows in the league and against Stellenbosch FC in the quarterfinal of the Nedbank Cup.    

Playing alongside and training with top quality players at Sundowns will stand Mabena’s development and growth as a footballer in good stead. At the tender age of 16 he certainly has time on his side to harness his talent.  

Europe moves

As much as Sundowns would understandably want to retain the young starlet’s services for as long as possible as they seek to continue their hegemony on the domestic scene as well as remaining a force on the African continent, history would suggest that Mabena should move to Europe as soon as possible.  

Many of SA’s leading football exports moved to Europe as teenagers. Quinton Fortune joined the Tottenham Hotspur academy at the age of 14, Delron Buckley joined German side VFL Bochum at 17 while Benni McCarthy, Steven Pienaar and Aaron Mokoena all moved to Ajax Amsterdam before their 20th birthdays.  

Former Kaizer Chiefs assistant coach Farouk Khan, who knows a thing or two about nurturing young talent courtesy of his successful Stars of Africa Academy that has developed European-based players such as Luther Singh, May Mahlangu, Thibang Phete, said the time is right for Mabena to move. 

“He has phenomenal playing intelligence, his technical ability is solid, physically he is fine and it is good that he is at a club like Sundowns where he will grow. At the moment he is in a good space. He is at the right club so his future looks very bright. A lot will depend on how he handles the psychosocial pressures that are bound to face him in the coming years.”  

Luther Singh was one of the top players at the U-20 Afcon in 2017 where he won the Golden Boot award. “Last year he signed for FC Copenhagen in Denmark but early in this season he was sent on loan to Chaves amid much criticism about his physical shape,” Khan said.

Mabena, who possesses undoubted talent, has all the potential to live his footballing dream. But as many a top player will advise him, talent is but one component of becoming a top class footballer. Hard work, discipline and commitment all form part of becoming the complete package.