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Home , CAF Champions League, Christopher Katongo, El Hadji Diouf, Ghana Player of the Year, Kalusha Bwalya, Percy Tau

FIRSTTOUCH

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"THE SKY IS THE SALARIES IN LIMBO? LIMIT" Where has happened to the salary of the Senior Women The Mamelodi Sundowns and Team their "Bafana Ba" style are on the come up!

TAU BETTER THAN WHO IS YAYA MO SALAH TOURE? discusses why Is Yaya the best African 's, Tau is better player of his generation? than Salah ad Mane

MOHAMED SALAH WINS PFA POTY Salah becomes the first Egyptian to win the award. SALARIES IN LIMBO? "THE SKY IS THE

Where has happened to the salary LIMIT" of the Zimbabwe Senior Women Team The Mamelodi Sundowns and their "Bafana Ba" style are on the come up!

WHO IS YAYA TOURE? TAU BETTER THAN MO SALAH Is Yaya the best African player of his generation? El Hadji Diouf discusses why South Africa's, Tau is better than Salah ad Mane

MOHAMED SALAH WINS PFA POTY Salah becomes the first Egyptian to win the award. CONTENTS

pg.3 pg.9

“TAU BETTER THAN SALAH AND MANE” ZAMBIAN FOOTBALL MANAGER ON THE RISE Former Liverpool and forward, El Hadji Former Zambian National team assistant coach who Diouf heaps praises on Mamelodi Sundowns, Tau. is moving mountains in the United Kingdom. pg.4 pg.10

PFA PLAYER OF THE YEAR: MO SALAH R

ZIMBABWEAN TEAM SALARY IN LIMBO E The Egyptian player has enjoyed a dream start to his I S life in England also helping his club reach the Finals of The Zimbabwe Mighty Warriors are yet to to receive E the UEFA Champions League. their allowances and winning bonuses. |

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pg.5 A G

SPOTLIGHT: WHO IS YAYA TOURE? pg.11 E

MAMELODI SUNDOWNS - THE SKY IS THE 2 Demystifying an African football legend that is Yaya LIMIT Toure. The Mamelodi Sundowns and their Bafana Ba style are on the come up! pg.8 LAOS FINED $700,00 BY FIFA pg.14

FIFA fines the country’s football federation for REMEMBERING THE FALLEN HEROES sanctioning “player-trafficking”. We take a moment to remember the Football Team who were victims of the 1993 Plane Crash F I R S T T

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2 The PSL joint top scorer with eleven “TAU BETTER league goals this campaign won the 2016 CAF Champions League with Sundowns THAN SALAH and has since become a fan favorite at the club. He has distinguished himself as a AND MANE” striker who can race from deep, create chances, make assists and score goals. His coach believes that he The former Liverpool and Senegal forward should unanimously win the 2017/18 PSL heaped praises on the quality of South African Player of the year. Tau is also determined football, going further to single out Mamelodi to make Diouf proud. Sundowns striker, . During Diouf’s visit to South Africa in his capacity as an “I hope one day he (Diouf) will be happy with ambassador of the Moroccan 2026 world cup what he said. I hope one day he’ll be proud bid, he also challenged South African that he said those words to this boy and look footballers to get out of their comfort zone at him now.” and aspire to play in European leagues. — PERCY TAU, MAMELODI SUNDOWNS

In response to Diouf’s praises, the 23-year old Tau revealed that the former Blackburn man had previously expressed his views when they traveled to Senegal for their final World Cup 2018 qualifier.

“Look‚ I spoke to Diouf in Senegal, and he expressed his views on my game‚ and what he feels. So, I wasn’t surprised by what he said this week. It only shows the good work that I and Sundowns do, and also how the coaches are helping us develop as players because we can easily be compared to European players.” — PERCY TAU, MAMELODI SUNDOWNS

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3 PFA PLAYER OF THE YEAR: MO SALAH

There were only two contenders for this ’s PFA Player of the Year award. The newly crowned champions’ Kevin De Bruyne and the current top goal scorer and record breaking Liverpool forward, Mohamed Salah. The two players have been outstanding for the greatest parts of this season. De Bruyne received praise from the likes of Gary Neville, , , and Jamie Redknapp for his brilliant passing ability and work rate. The pundits have since drawn Leroy Sane also won the PFA Young Player of comparison of him to the greatest the Year award for his outstanding contribution to have ever played in the . this season. It was quite a shock not to see him They call him a hybrid of Paul Scholes and in the team of the year for this season because in one player who has been he was arguably the best creator on the wings crucial to City’s success this in the 2017/18 season. Guardiola really has a season as they won the Premier League and talent in the 22-year-old German and will hope the League Cup. The Citizens were rooting for to build on this season to push for more titles. him to win the award of the best player this season but they were disappointed to hear that their midfield general could not walk away with the award. Mo Salah, of Liverpool arguably deserved it more after coming into a F I

different league and hitting everyone by R S

surprise with 31 league goals already, T T O

equalling the record set Suarez, Shearer and U C

Henry in a 38 game season. The Egyptian H

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player has enjoyed a dream start to his life in P A

England also helping his club reach the G E

semifinals of the UEFA Champions League. 4 As we approach the end of the English Premier League season, FirstTouch takes time to look back SPOTLIGHT: and appreciate one of the most influential players in the league. Yaya Toure, an all-round from Cote d’Ivoire, played for Barcelona and Manchester WHO IS YAYA City in the best years of his career. The 33-year old is approaching the end of his time at the Etihad with his contract set to expire at the end of the 2017/18 TOURE? season. Let’s look at what Yaya Toure has been through during his stay at the above-mentioned clubs in .

First off, let’s focus on his time at Barcelona. Yaya Toure joined Barcelona from Monaco in 2007 for £6.7m after being an influential midfielder for the French side where he rescued them from relegation. However, Toure had problems with the previous manager of the club, Laszlo Boloni, who was not playing him in his midfield most preferred position. When he joined Barcelona, he enjoyed the first season under Rijkaard where he made a total of 40 appearances which managed two goals. Yaya Toure was still in the shadow of big brother Kolo who was making a name for himself at Arsenal as a rock solid defender in the EPL. Guardiola took over the reins just a year later, and he preferred Busquets to Yaya Toure as the defensive midfielder for Barcelona in 2008. The promise of first-team football in his preferred position at Barcelona was not going to be possible. Guardiola used the player as a center-back in the UEFA Champions League final in 2009 when the team suffered from injuries. He was later allowed to move to the club of his dream in 2010.

Manchester City approached Toure and he, initially F I thought that he would be joining Sir Alex Ferguson R S T

at Manchester United. It was his agent who clarified T O

that he was joining the team who wears blue and he U C

was excited by the challenge of joining a club that H

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was in the shadow of their local rivals. A G E

5 Manchester City paid £24.6 million for the services of a player who was pretty much a reserve player and Toure was going to be receiving £139,000 a week. The journey of the African player to become a legend at the Etihad Stadium was set on course.

2012 was a year of history for the cash-rich Manchester club. It is the year that the club beat Manchester United to the title on goal difference. Sergio Aguero scored the winner for Manchester City in stoppage time of the last game in the 2011/12 season. Yaya Toure was an integral part of the club’s midfield. This earned him much respect in the English Premier League and comparisons with some His career might sound smooth when reading this of the greatest midfielders in the league like piece, but Toure has had his fair share of Keane, Vieira, etc. was just a moment away. controversy during his time at City. The player once Toure came out and thanked his teammates threatened to leave the club because they had for the title and paid tribute to his manager forgotten to show him love on his 31st birthday. His for trusting in him and playing him in a agent, Dimitry Seluk, is the one that confirmed the position that he found difficult to maintain in story that the player felt disrespected and the club the previous clubs he represented. was put under pressure. Some saw this incident as a stunt by the pair to pressurize the club to improve In addition to that, Toure evolved to become the terms of the contract, and the club fell for it. His a ruthless attacker who scored goals that are contract saw him being the highest paid player in still admired today. In the 2013/14 season, English football at $334,000 a week. All this was Yaya Toure assumed a more attacking role in soon going to fade away with the player Manchester City and even though he was approaching the ‘old age’ years. primarily deployed as a defensive midfielder. This season, Yaya Toure managed to score 20 Yaya Toure in action for Manchester City FC in goals in the English Premier League which UEFA Champions League was unspoken off considering that he came The manager who pushed him out of the club at from deep to set himself up and his Barcelona and laughed at Toure for joining a ‘s**t’ team eventually found his way to Toure’s home. Pep contribution won his club the English Premier F I Guardiola has announced the new boss at R League title again as well as the FA Cup. At S T

Manchester City in 2016, and the Ivorian player T this moment, Yaya Toure had become the O

probably knew that he was doomed. U more popular player in his family and had C H

stepped out of the shadow of the former |

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Arsenal player. A G E

6 It is no secret that the pair had a rocky for the third time in his career by the same relationship because of the way the manager manager. Guardiola brought replacements for treated Toure at Barcelona and eventually the player because he does not believe in his forced him to move to the Citizens. This time, abilities and it is about time that the player Guardiola took over a club where Toure was takes the next step in his career. Toure played already a legend and was the focal point of the in the 4-1 win against West Ham today, and he team before Aguero. The Spaniard soon could only manage a second-half appearance changed that and eventually left Yaya out of even when the team has been confirmed the first team after his manager after Toure’s champions of the Premier League this season. It agent, Dimitry Seluk, called out Guardiola on is evident that Guardiola never like him and the his hypocrisy in coming to England after African player will probably leave in the making fun of the club in 2010. This did not sit summer. It has been quite a journey for the down well with Guardiola, and he punished the Ivorian midfielder who won the (twice), player because of his agent’s words. The fans Copa del Rey, UEFA Champions League, FIFA were heartbroken by this situation but the Club World Cup, FA Cup, League Cup (twice), relationship was mended, and Yaya was and the English Premier League on three restored to the first team early last year. He occasions. He has undoubtedly subscribed his played enough to earn another year in an name in the Hall of Fame of not just English extension. football, but on the European scene and he will be missed if he decides to call his time at the This season seems like it will be his last at end of the season. Manchester City and he has been ousted again F I R S T T O U C H

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7 LAOS FINED $700,00 BY FIFA

The South East Asian country’s Football Federation has been slapped with a (USD) $700 000 fine for illegally acquiring African talent to abode in their shores. The 2015 BBC story on the illegal transfer of minors could have played a huge role in this development as it revealed some shocking scenarios of fourteen-year-olds playing football with no pay and forced to sleep on the floor of the club’s stadium.

Laos’ top club, Champasak United is reported to have illegally acquired 23 under-age players ( fourteen and fifteen-year-olds) from and putting them in an unregistered football academy in 2015. It is also understood that the club deployed some fourteen and fifteen-year-olds for official club matches.

In accordance with their regulation of forbidding players under the age of 18 to be transferred internationally without meeting established criteria, Fifa ruled that Laos had breached the rules. F I R S T T O U C H

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8 He also refuses to be bothered by the challenges that may come as a result of being a ZAMBIAN Black and Minority Ethic coach learning his trade in English Lower Leagues:

FOOTBALL "Although the general public will say people from BME background are underrepresented and at a disadvantage. I have never ever MANAGER ON brought any attention to that. Every role I have had I've got through hard work and thanks to my personality. I've never been THE RISE involved with or taken advantage of any BME scheme or initiative."

There weren’t any Africans in the Ballon D’Or The likes of Jose Mourinho, Andres Villas Boas, conversation since George Weir, but Mohamed Louis Van Gaal and Roy Hodgson previously Salah has completely changed that. In the same combined teaching and scouting roles before vein, the notion of not having a lot of Africans in being management greats. The 36-year-old, the management of top teams in the world might Irfan Kawri may soon join that company. soon be history. ESPN made contact with Irfan Kawri, the former Zambian national team assistant coach who is moving mountains in the United Kingdom. Irfan left the Chipolopolo job after their 2016 African Nations Championship and African Nations qualifier for England where he was born to a Zambian mother and Indian father. He now serves as the assistant of the coach lower league side, Clitheroe FC combining that with an Opposition Analyst and Scout role with Championship side, Queens Park Rangers. It doesn’t end there, the physical education and football teacher also works with the Manchester Schoolboys U-14s. It’s a combination of roles that complement each other, definitely building F I him to know a whole lot about the game. R S T T O

"The balance is good in the sense that I am using U C

different skills and abilities, and developing my H

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skillset which makes it extensive. The skills and P A abilities are transferable.” - Irfan Kawri G E

9 Kwinji 15, came out to plead for financial ZIMBABWEAN support. Catching up with the ZIFA competition and communications manager, Xolisani Gwesela, this is what he had to say pertaining TEAM SALARY the matter:

“I would like to clarify the issue of $5, it was not IN LIMBO their allowances for playing. It transports reimbursements. Across ZIFA we have rates which we use, which even councilors, employees and Zimbabwe Senior women’s soccer team have players are paid, so $5 is the local allowance for another battle to fight just after burying the Harare-based players. Brave Gladiators of , 4-0 on aggregate to book a date with neighbors Zambia in the And, it depends, if you are staying outside Harare final round of qualifications for the 2018 (it’s) $15 or more. So $5 is not allowances for their Women’s AFCON. The Mighty Warriors are participation in the first round of the Africa reported to be sitting in at the Zimbabwe Women Cup of Nations qualifiers. Football Association (ZIFA) village in Harare, demanding their allowances and winning Yes, we owe them outstanding allowances. Our bonuses. We understand that the players accounts department is seized with this matter received (USD) $5 each as transport allowance and these amounts will be paid, not in cash, and remaining dues dating back to those because we all know what is obtaining in our accrued in the COSAFA Championships held last economy, we don’t have cash. year are to be paid in due course. The women have refused to leave the ZIFA Village’s It is going to be directly channeled into their premises until their debt has been settled. accounts.” — XOLISANI GWESELA, ZIFA The salaries phenomenon has become a popular COMMUNICATIONS AND COMPETITIONS but boring melody in the Mighty Warriors’ MANAGER continental and global exploits. In fact, prior to the Namibia match, the Zimbabwean coach, F I R S T T O U C H

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1 0 Locally, the Mamelodi boys are also known as MAMELODI the Brazilians because of their uniform colors, Ka Bo Yellow (with yellowness), Masandawana SUNDOWNS - or Bafana BaStyle. THE SKY IS CHAMPIONSHIPS AND RECORDS Masandawana are the most successful South African club in the era THE LIMIT dating back to 1996, having won a record of seven league titles, four Nedbank cups - an equivalent of the English FA Cup, National SUNDOWNS' BRIEF HISTORY Football League Championships thrice and most recently, the continental crown (CAF The Sundowns were birthed in 1960 by Champions League trophy) and the 2016 CAF youngsters in and around Marabastad in Club of The Year Award. Downs are infamous Pretoria, South Africa. They joined the for annihilating Powerlines FC, 24 - 0, yes they Federation of Professional League Soccer in won by 24 goals to nothing! It was a Nedbank 1967, reaching the finals of the Coca-Cola cup cup tie in 2012 in which their long-range sniper, in their debut year which they lost to Berea Hlompo Kekana found the back of the net United. Sundowns were relegated to the lower seven times together with Zimbabwean striker, soccer division in 1980 before Mr. Cool, Zola Nyasha Mushekwi getting half a dozen of goals Mahobe, bought and rescued the club in 1985. as well. They are the only team from South The ensuing years were the lavish years when Africa to ever participate in the FIFA Club the controversial Mr. Cool invested heavily in World Cup though they finished winless in that the club, seeing them win a few major titles. particular tournament. When Zola was arrested, Standard Bank seized the club which was later acquired by the Krok brothers who steered the club to seven league titles in the post-independence era (1994). Billionaire, Patrice Motsepe bought into the club in 2003 before increasing his F I stake from 51-100% in 2004, renaming the R S T club to Mamelodi Sundowns as “a nod to its T O heritage in Atteridgeville, Eersterus and U C

Laudium and the club’s home in Mamelodi.” H

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His goal became continental glory for the club A G and appointed Pitso Mosimane as head coach, E

1 to steer the boys to success. 1 “BAFANA BA STYLE” about living the inscription. Sundowns now have over 300 registered branches of The club is increasingly cementing their place supporters associations in Zambia, Swaziland, in the fans’ hearts as the most attractive to Botswana, Zimbabwe and even abroad in the watch in the PSL. They were dubbed, Bafana Cincinnati, USA. One of the supporters ba Style which literally means, boys with style. associations in Atteridgeville, South Africa Their game is ever becoming more technical, contributed some money to buy materials and full of flair, precision, and quick short passes - built a shack house for one of their own, on her some locals call it ‘shoe shine and piano.’ In birthday. They expressed their interest in other parts of the world, this would be tiki- helping a fellow Masandawana achieve her taka as is/was the case with the Catalans, dreams. A shack house might not necessarily be Barcelona. Some would highlight that what a big deal some eyes but it was good enough to sets them apart from the rest is their style let tears free flow from the lady’s eyes. That’s mixed with purpose, unlike some PSL teams how much it meant to her. From time to time, who showboat once in a while but have limited the fans also gather in small communities to results to show for it. Their thrashing of enjoy some time together, grilling meat and Powerlines FC may act as evidence to suggest drinking beverages. Social initiatives by the club their ruthlessness even in winning positions. include the Miss Mamelodi Sundowns beauty pageant, birthed in 2010 to empower women UBUTHU-BOTHO - LIVING THE DREAM throughout the country. The coveted beauty F

pageant has the largest prize in South Africa I R S

You would be perfectly justified if you say that and prides itself in paralleling with other T T Ubuthu-Botho is perhaps their mantra. It is an prestigious awards such as Miss South Africa. O U C

African world-view which literally means They also participate in the Sanlam Kay H

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humanness or personhood embodying socio- Motsepe Schools Cup tournament, the biggest P A moral significance. The phrase is inscribed on schools football tournament with a prize G E their yellow and blue uniforms and more money of over (USD) $250 000. This 1 2 importantly - they seem to be intentional tournament acts as an avenue for football aspirants to showcase themselves and at times get scouted by professional teams.

THE SKY IS THE LIMIT

Backed by a strong sense of community, competitive spirit and a billionaire in the form of Patrice Motsepe, there is no telling how far they can go. We have recently seen them establish a football philosophy, acquire foreign players to camp in South Africa, not just fellow Africans but from as far as New Zealand, Uruguay and quite interestingly having the football aspirant/Olympics Champion, Usain Bolt join their ranks for training - I would guess that global conquest is in their sights and may possibly play a major role in taking African football to the world or bringing the world to Africa. The sky is indeed the limit. F I R S T T O U C H

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1 3 A day does not go by that I don’t think about my REMEMBERING family that I lost off the coast of in 1993. 25 years later my heart is still broken. A team THE FALLEN that could have gone so far.” - The former Chipolopolo captain who led the team to a historic and emotional 2012 AFCON HEROES title triumph, has also paid his respects encouraged the country to do more for the families of those who tragically On the 27th of April in 1993, a talented Zambian passed on in the accident. squad on its way to , Senegal to play a world cup qualifier match, crashed into the Atlantic "We have to remember in a way that the family Ocean after shortly taking off from Libreville, actually has to feel it. We are not doing enough Gabon. All the twenty-five squad members passed for the family to really feel we had a hero.” - on, including the flight crew. As we remember the Christopher Katongo amazing Chipolopolo side, we look at some of the Zambians paying tribute to the fallen footballing Speaking about the country’s state at the time heroes. of the accident, Katongo added:

The Zambian captain, Kalusha Bwalya, who is a "The whole country was quiet. Nobody was survivor of the 1993 national team set up after he shouting, it was only whispering. I had never seen had made separate arrangements to join the team the country quite like that. No one was listening in Dakar from his club, PSV Eindhoven, paid his to music, everybody was listening to the radio respects on Twitter: and every hour there was news of the crash." - Christopher Katongo “Today I decided to go give homage to my fallen teammates a day earlier. To the 1993 Copper bullets side, we remember! F I R S T T O U C H

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