Mamelodi Sundowns’ veteran goalkeeper Denis Onyango, who is the most successful player in the history of the PSL by far, says his arrival in Mzansi, in 2006, happened by sheer coincidence.
He is now 41 and in the twilight years of his glittering, trophy-laden career. Onyango has won 21 trophies in the 20 years he’s been manning the goalposts in the Premier Soccer League. He has lifted the PSL league trophy an astonishing 12 times, has two CAF Champions League medals and has secured the CAF Super Cup.
Domestically, he has a catalogue of other PSL cup titles under his belt. In fact, he has won just about every trophy in Mzansi football circles. No player, present or past, comes close to such astonishing individual achievements.
The retired Uganda international told Sunday World that Pitso Mosimane, who was coaching SuperSport United at that time (2006), had travelled to Tanzania for a Council of East and Central Africa Football Associations youth tournament to scout Ethiopian striker Fikru Tefera.
But instead, Mosimane was impressed by the goalkeeping skills of Onyango, who happened to be Tefera’s teammate at St George FC at the tournament.
Mosimane returned to Matsatsantsa a Pitori with Onyango in tow. While Fikru became the first Ethiopian in the PSL, Onyango went on stake his claim. He is now the only player to have won a jaw-dropping 21 PSL trophies.
“I was spotted by coach Pitso who was there to have a look at my teammate Fikru [Tefera]. But I played so well that Pitso changed his mind and instead recruited me.
“I was lucky they signed me when I was the player they were not chasing and ended up signing for Pirates,” Onyango said.
“I am grateful to Pitso, Stan Matthews, my goalkeeper coach Grant Johnson at SuperSport, my agent Ivica Stankovich and I cannot forget to mention Sundowns — they all played an important pat in my career and in my life.
“I was also lucky that I played alongside hard-working players and dedicated stars such as Daine Klate and Ricardo Katza in my early professional years,” he added.
“In terms of all these medals and trophies, I have achieved more than I could dream or expected. I exceeded my expectations and it took a lot of sacrifices, like travelling up and down on long trips on the African continent.”
- Denis Onyango, Mamelodi Sundowns’ veteran goalkeeper, is the most successful player in PSL history.
- Onyango revealed that his move to South Africa (Mzansi) in 2006 was purely by chance.
- The full story is available in the e-edition of Sunday World.
- Readers can access the complete article by purchasing the e-edition via Magzter.
- Additional video content related to the story is available on the Sunday World YouTube channel.
Mamelodi
He is now 41 and in the twilight years of his glittering, trophy-laden career.
Domestically, he has a catalogue of other PSL cup titles under his belt. In fact, he has won just about every trophy in Mzansi football circles. No player, present or past, comes close to such astonishing individual achievements.
But instead, Mosimane was impressed by the goalkeeping skills of
Mosimane returned to Matsatsantsa a Pitori with
“I was spotted by coach Pitso who was there to have a look at my teammate Fikru [Tefera]. But I played so well that Pitso changed his mind and instead recruited me.
“I was lucky they signed me when I was the player they were not chasing and ended up signing for Pirates,”
“I am grateful to Pitso, Stan
“I was also lucky that I played alongside hard-working players and dedicated stars such as Daine Klate and Ricardo Katza in my early professional years,” he added.
“In terms of all these medals and trophies, I have achieved more than I could dream or expected. I exceeded my expectations and it took a lot of sacrifices, like travelling up and down on long trips on the African continent.”
