As expected, there was no deadline day drama in the Premier Soccer League this week, with the biggest move hours before the transfer window shut at midnight on Wednesday being that of emerging young talent Maphosa Modiba swapping Cape Town City for SuperSport United, and forgotten man Thato Mokeke going in the opposite direction.
But PSL clubs - who as usual stuck to the culture of attempting to sign an entire new team - concluded their business early.
Here Mazola Molef e rates the top five transfers for the 2016/17 season and why they are likely to make the desired impact:
Gabadinho Mhango
Bidvest Wits
Two games into the campaign and you can already tell the Malawian international will be a hit at Wits, a side with probably the second best squad in the league behind reigning champions Mamelodi Sundowns. Mhango was technically the club’s first recruit having signed a pre-contract as early as January, a move which led to his then employers Bloemfontein Celtic kicking him out.
He finished the rest of the previous season at Golden Arrows and scored all four goals in a 4-2 drubbing of Mpumalanga Black Aces in April. Wits coach Gavin Hunt has been so desperate not to leave him out of his starting line-up, that he played him on the wing instead of up top against Kaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates last week. Nevertheless, Mhango showed his class.
Tefu Mashamaite
SuperSport United
His arrival has tilted the odds for Stuart Baxter’s side as now surely one of the league title contenders. Mashamaite will add experience and order to a defence that has been shoddy even before Baxter took over in January.
The coach had done little to address this problem area until Mashamaite was signed on Tuesday from Swedish club BK Hacken. It was apparently an inconvenience for SuperSport to conclude the deal now instead of five months later as initially planned, but they will not regret this move after their back four was exposed in the two back-to-back defeats against Platinum Stars in the league and city rivals Mamelodi Sundowns in the MTN8 quarter-finals.
Sibusiso Vilakazi
Mamelodi Sundowns
It had been long coming and there is no doubt ‘Vila’ will add value to an already talented, as well as strong squad, that is two matches away from reaching the final of the CAF Champions League this year.
If there were any doubts how coach Pitso Mosimane would fit the Bafana Bafana international into his team, one which boasts the deadly CBD combination of Leonardo Castro, Khama Billiat and Keagan Dolly, then Sunday’s 3-1 cup victory over SuperSport was the perfect way to show how.
With Castro now likely to miss some matches due to injury, Vilakazi is a no-brainer as a replacement alongside Billiat, Dolly and whomever Mosimane picks from his gifted pool.
Jackson Mabokgwane
Orlando Pirates
We can all agree that Felipe Ovono has blown his chances of retaining that No 1 jersey throughout the season after several howlers - in just two matches so far this season. This is where Mabokgwane comes in. Pirates fans, a fraction anyway, will argue that another goalie in Brighton Mhlongo should be reinstated as the club’s first choice, but the truth is that he, too, has never been Mr Reliable.
Mabokgwane might have height issues, but he is undoubtedly the best Pirates have got and it is just a matter of time before coach Muhsin Ertugral gets over his Ovono obsession and fields a goalkeeper that will give them a fighting chance against Sundowns, Wits and the rest of their rivals.
Anele Ngcongca
Mamelodi Sundowns
Any other defender arriving at Chloorkop might have been considered a luxury given the obvious embarrassment of riches there.
But when a one-time Bafana Bafana captain, a World Cup and Africa Cup of Nations participant, as well as a man who has been on the European Champions League stage, is available - you sign him up.
Sundowns have scored big here, replacing skipper Ramahlwe Mphahlele, who left to join Chiefs in June, with a versatile player with plenty of experience. It was not necessary, but the fact that they did, shows they mean business and want to dominate the domestic league over the coming years.
@superjourno
The Star