How Swedish legend Larsson wanted Pule but instead got Ralani

Former Barcelona, Manchester United and Sweden international striker Henrik Larsson played a significant role in Cape Town City and Bafana Bafana winger Bradley 'Surprise' Ralani's career.

The story of Ralani's rise perhaps doesn't always receive the attention it deserves.

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Having been released by the Kaizer Chiefs academy as a teenager, Ralani's path had looked to be following in the footsteps of many a youngster whose dream had failed - he had left the big city of Johannesburg and had returned home to small-town Kimberley, although, unlike some others, Ralani was at least able to gain employment, within the Department of Sports in Northern Cape.

But then another opportunity arose - to return to Joburg and play for Farouk Khan's Stars of Africa Academy, from where he got onto the radar of then Helsingborg coach Bo Nilsson after having been watched by Swedish scouts in South Africa.

“I scored two goals. I had a very good game. They told Farouk they wanted me for Sweden, but he insisted he still wanted to polish me. The coach [Bo Nilsson] took my number and he kept checking up,” Ralani explained during an in-depth interview with FarPost.

Ralani eventually made his way over to Helsingborg on a three-month visa - "just so the club could see how I would fit in."

He initially trained with Larsson, who was nearing the end of his playing career, although their time together was curtailed by a knee injury the former Celtic star suffered. In the meantime, Ralani had a short spell with fourth-tier side IFK Hassleholm before returning home, his hopes of an international career put on ice after Nilsson left Helsingborg.

Ralani and Larsson's paths were, however, to cross again in a way in which Ralani's life was changed.

Now head coach of top-flight club Landskrona IP, Larsson was on a recruitment drive and was interested in bringing former Kaizer Chiefs ball wizard Jabu Pule, later Mahlangu, over to Sweden. Pule had previously played with Larsson at Helsingborg.

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But when Larsson asked Nilsson to get in touch with Pule, he instead was told by the senior man: "I’ll bring you someone younger."

Ralani remembers that moment which ultimately restored his football dream.

“Just out of the blue I got a call from Bo Nilsson. He asked if I wanted to return to Sweden because Henrik wanted a player. I wanted to go back and play football professionally,” he continued.

Still, though, there were more obstacles for Ralani to climb. Larsson, these days the assistant coach at Barcelona, used Ralani sparingly off the bench, even if he did offer him some praise.
 
“He told me he was not happy with my performance. He then said: ‘the one thing that showed me you’re a good player is your first touch’. He compared my first touch to Ronaldinho’s,” the Cape Town City winger recalled.

However, as things went on, Ralani proved his worth to Larsson with some crucial goals and assists and won the manager over to the point that when the South African began to be linked with some of Sweden's biggest teams, the former Uefa Champions League winner declared:

‘Surprise is going nowhere, if Landskrona can’t afford him I’ll pay him myself’.

The two of them spent three seasons together before Larsson left, not before presenting Ralani with a signed number 17 Manchester United jersey, which now sits in Ralani's family home in Kimberley.

The South African spent a further two seasons with Landskrona before making his way to Danish club Lyngby and later spent a couple of seasons with Helsingborg before returning home in 2017 to play for Cape Town City.

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