Questions have been raised about the future of the 23-year-old striker. The young man, nicknamed the Radio-man, has seen his playing time at the Soweto giants limited due to stiff competition. The Radio-man's failure to capitalise on the initial opportunities afforded to him by coach Abdeslam Ouaddou at the beginning of the ongoing 2025/26 campaign.
Mamelodi Sundowns and Orlando Pirates, who arguably have quality players as opposed to Amakhosi, have already added a few new faces to their squads, as opposed to the Glamour Boys, who are seemingly happy with the playing unit. Their skipper is convinced the available men have what it takes to do the job effectively.
Masandawana have developed the habit of strengthening their squad by entering the South American market looking for the best talent. This mission to South America has seen them get, sometimes, good players, but at times, the signed stars flopped. The best talent from South America that has served Sundowns impeccably includes Lucas Ribeiro, but some have struggled and left without making indelible marks.
After months out of the dugout, the 50-year-old has landed a new job in Scandinavia. After a good stint with the Soweto giants, the Spaniard struggled with Al Ahly and was dismissed after a short period of time. Now, with a new club, the MTN8 winner must prove to the world that he is still a top coach by guiding the success-hungry team to more titles and that the Al Ahly period was just a temporary period of struggle in his career.
There has been a massive debate regarding the decision by the national team technical team to exclude Mshishi and Nyoso from the squad, which featured in the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco, where South Africa crashed out in the Round of 16, falling 2-1 against the five-time champions Cameroon.
Transfer activity has picked up in the Premier Soccer League as well as overseas, with several moves already capturing the attention of South African football followers. Players have been switching clubs both locally and abroad and more transfers are expected to be finalised in the coming days as clubs continue to reshape their squads.
With the Africa Cup of Nations finals coming to an end on Sunday, Premier Soccer League fever pitch is set to hit high once the campaign resumes. As expected, eyes will be on the leading sides: Mamelodi Sundowns and Orlando Pirates. Masandawana will be keen to keep their dominance in the competition going, while Bucs are eager to break it.
The 25-year-old left-back is one of the quality players at the Glamour Boys who were brought on board by former coach Nasreddine Nabi to help in rebuilding the Soweto giants, who have not been delivering consistently, in recent years, as they should both domestically and on the continental scene.
The Soweto giants have been loaning a number of reserve team players to local clubs as well as teams outside South Africa to get valuable first-team experience. This has drawn attention from supporters, with some questioning the overall quality of talent coming through the ranks at Naturena.
There have been questions about the future of South Africa in terms of the goalkeeping department, which has, in recent years, relied on the Mamelodi Sundowns star, who has a couple of years left before calling it a day in the national team. The likes of Sipho Chaine have been tipped to take over, but he sometimes struggles for consistency.
One of the key components in any team setup is a competitive goalkeeping department. In most cases, the best, usually the most experienced one, is always the number one choice, and in the case of Bafana, Mamelodi Sundowns' captain has been the undisputed choice. With his age advancing and no young successor in the picture already, a goalkeeping problem for the national team has been predicted.
The Africa Cup of Nations finals is heading to the ultimate stage, and to every South African football fan, they had to believe their team had the ability to reach this stage. However, Bafana were eliminated quite early; Cameroon's Indomitable Lions proved too strong for them and eliminated the 1996 AFCON champions in the Round of 16. Since elimination, criticism, counter-criticism and the blame game have been the order of the day, and many fingers have pointed to one man: Broos.
The Soweto giants are on course to end the 2025/26 campaign with four major trophies in their cabinet. This comes after an impressive first half of the season, despite a setback in the CAF Champions League. The Buccaneers are now conducting their transfer business as they look to assemble a stronger squad for the remainder of the season.
At the season's halfway mark, clubs have had enough time to assess their playing units and now know what needs to be done to make them even more competitive. Premier Soccer League giants Bucs and Masandawana have made statement signings, while Amakhosi remain silent in the transfer window. Other clubs have not been left behind, as they have also moved stealthily and acquired new signings before the campaign resumes.
The 20-year-old defender has been doing well for both club and country, explaining why he was snapped up by the Major League Soccer outfit from the Buccaneers, who gave him a chance in March 2025. The centre-back was part of the Bafana Bafana team that featured in the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Morocco, where they reached the Round of 16.
The South African Premier Soccer League has recently produced talented youngsters who have shown promise in the game, inviting interest from abroad where several teams have been chasing them. In the last couple of months, youngsters have left for Belgium as well as the Major League Soccer and, seemingly, this is not going to stop.
The Amakhosi starlet becomes another talent from the country to cross the border and join his international counterpart. Coincidentally, the club is owned by an Amakhosi legend, and the move by the youngster represents a connection of some sort between the club and the Soweto giants.
Masandawana have made statement signings, sending a clear signal to rivals that they should expect a stronger team. Monnapule Saleng and Brayan Leon are top stars that have been brought on board to strengthen the striking department that already has record breaker Peter Shalulile and Iqraam Rayners, last season's second-best league scorer. But who exactly is influencing these signings? A question has been posed.
The 29-year-old did well for Stellenbosch under the then coach Steve Berker, who has since left Stellies for Simba SC in the Tanzanian Premier League. The attacker is set to help the Buccaneers in their bid to conquer the South African top-flight football, as well as the remaining domestic competitions.
The Buccaneers have been making quality signings in the short January transfer window as the management and the technical team are working harder to ensure they have enough arsenal to challenge Mamelodi Sundowns and Co. for the Premier Soccer League title in the ongoing 2025/2026 campaign after going for more than a decade without one.
The South Africa international has established himself as one of the elite forwards in the Premier Soccer League, but in the 2025/26 campaign, he has struggled for game time owing to stiff competition at Bucs, coupled with preferences by coach Abdeslam Ouaddou. The 29-year-old might have played his last game for the Soweto giants.
The Buccaneers are showing no intention of slowing down as they have made three signings in the short January transfer window, as they work on achieving their target of winning all the domestic competitions. Already, they have secured the MTN8 and the Carling Knockout, which happened before the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) break.
The 21-year-old has been a target for the defending Premier Soccer League champions, Masandawana, and the reigning Nedbank Cup winners, Amakhosi, owing to his strong display while with TS Galaxy, a team he joined three seasons ago. However, the duo has missed out after the Major League Soccer side acted swiftly to seal the deal.
With the 2026 FIFA World Cup on the horizon, two Buccaneers attacking midfielders risk struggling for game time and missing out as competition for places intensifies within Abdeslam Ouaddou's squad. However, the New Zealander's arrival could spark some fierce competitiveness for the Soweto giants in the middle of the park. That added depth may also drive the Buccaneers side to mount a stronger push for the Premier Soccer League title.
By strengthening their playing unit, the Brazilians are sending a clear message to their rivals that they mean business. So far, the Tshwane giants have confirmed the signing of Brayan Leon from Colombia and Monnapule Saleng from Orlando Pirates. The signing of the Bafana defender means there will be no void left in the defensive department after Lucas Suarez's exit.
The forward's move from one Premier Soccer League title contender to another remains the biggest move so far in the January transfer window. After an impressive outing for Orbit College in the first round of the campaign, Saleng will have to prove himself in another club, bigger and more competitive than the PSL debutants. His signing comes at a time when there are rumours Masandawana are set to make changes to their technical bench.
Orlando Pirates
