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Can Mhango or Nurkovic break Mbesuma’s record?

Samir Nurkovic, Rushine De Reuck - Image copyright Steve Haag Sports
Samir Nurkovic, Rushine De Reuck – Image copyright Steve Haag Sports

The top scorer award in South Africa has been a joke in the past decade with notable things like Chris Katongo leaving to go overseas during the January window but still collecting the Golden Boot award. Luvuyo Memela was Orlando Pirates’ top scorer with just five goals and the left-back Lucas Thwala won with seven goals. Willard Katsande was once Kaizer Chiefs’ top scorer with seven goals which most came from the penalty spot.

Photo Copyright – Steve Haag Sports 

Bernard Parker won the PSL Golden Boot, scoring 10 goals in a 30 games season and that has been the trend for most of the decade. Percy Tau and Rodney Ramagalela scored 11 goals to share the award.

Only Katlego Mphela (17) and Siyabonga Nomvethe (20) have come close to reaching Collins Mbesuma’s record of 25 league goals, which he scored during the 2004/05 season. In the 2015/16 season, Mbesuma won the golden boot with 14 goals while he was plying his trade at Mpumalanga Black Aces.

Strikers in the PSL have been terribly poor in recent seasons. A hat-trick was something we didn’t associate with the players in the PSL, with only one treble of goals scored last season.

However, the arrival of Samir Nurkovic to Chiefs and Gabadinho Mhango to Pirates has changed things around. These players are in red hot form scoring goals for fun, week in, week out.

Mhango currently leads the top scorers’ chart with 12 goals, the Malawian international has scored nine goals since the arrival of Josef Zinnbauer including a first-half hat trick against Polokwane City. At this rate, one would take a punt on Mhango to finally break Mbesuma’s record.

Kaizer Chiefs have had striking problems in the past and Nurkovic looks to be the man they have needed. The Serbian came with a good reputation from the second division in Slovakia but a lot of people undermined the big striker. He has proved all the doubters wrong and showed that this league was made for him. He’s a very dangerous striker which uses both feet and very good in the air as well.

Nurkovic has scored 10 goals from 15 matches including the hat-trick against Bloemfontein Celtic and a brace against defending champions Mamelodi Sundowns.

Other notable strikers who are worth a mention in the title race are Golden Arrows’ Knox Muthizwa, who is playing his best football under Steve Komphela. The Zimbabwean international is currently on nine goals. AmaZulu’s Bongi Ntuli has been the biggest talking point this season, the player is literally scoring all of Usuthu’s goal, boasting 10 under his name, despite his team rooted at the foot of the table.

Because of inconsistencies in their respective clubs, one can expect Ntuli and Muthizwa to fall short from the two favourites.

The big question remains, can the two goal poachers break Mbesuma’s record?

Written by Banele Pikwa for Hollywoodbets 

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