Mandla Masango (born July 18, 1989) is a South African

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who most recently played as a

right winger In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. ...

for

Randers Randers () is a city in Randers Municipality, Central Denmark Region on the Jutland peninsula. It is List of cities and towns in Denmark, Denmark's sixth-largest city, with a population of 64,511 ().Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

. Masango represented

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

at various youth levels and has been a full international since making his senior debut in 2013.

Club career

Kaizer Chiefs

Masango joined

Kaizer Chiefs Kaizer Chiefs Football Club (often known as Chiefs) is a South African professional football club based in Naturena, Johannesburg South, that plays in the Premiership. The team is nicknamed ''AmaKhosi'', which means "Kings" or "Chiefs" in Zu ...

in 2007 ahead of the 2007–08 Premier Soccer League season. He made his debut against

Thanda Royal Zulu Thanda Royal Zulu was a South African football club based in Richards Bay, KwaZulu-Natal. History The club started after a Swedish consortium that included Sven-Goran Eriksson bought the franchise from Benoni Premier United at the end of the 2 ...

on 15 August 2007, scoring the Chiefs' first goal in a 2–0 win. He has gradually become a regular in the club's first team, making ten league appearances in 2009–10, before playing 20 league games in 2010–11. He has played twice so far in the 2011–12 season. Masango also scored for Kaiser Chiefs in their 2–0 win over

Mpumalanga Black Aces Black Aces was a South African football club that played in the Premier Soccer League. Aces usually played their home games in the Mpumalanga province but were based and trained in Johannesburg. History The original club was founded in 1937 by ...

on 24 February 2010, again opening the scoring. In the 2012–13 season where Chiefs won a league and cup double, Masango played only nine league games. In 2013–14, he made his

CAF Champions League The CAF Champions League, known for sponsorship purposes as the TotalEnergies CAF Champions League and formerly the African Cup of Champions Clubs, is an annual football club (association football), club football competition organized by the Conf ...

debut against

Black Africa Sub-Saharan Africa is the area and regions of the continent of Africa that lie south of the Sahara. These include Central Africa, East Africa, Southern Africa, and West Africa. Geopolitically, in addition to the list of sovereign states and ...

and scored a scissor kick from a

Knowledge Musona Knowledge Musona (born 21 June 1990) is a Zimbabwean professional footballer who plays as a left winger or forward for Al-Okhdood in the Saudi Pro League. Musona, also captained the Zimbabwe national team prior to retiring from international ...

cross in the 3–0 win. He also came off the bench in the

Nedbank Cup The Nedbank Cup is the current name of South Africa's Premier Soccer League, premier club association football, soccer knockout tournament. While many formats have been used over the years, the tournament has always been based on the idea of gi ...

Last 16 match and scored a diving header against

ABC Motsepe League The SAFA Second Division (known as the ABC Motsepe League for sponsorship reasons, and previously the Vodacom League between 1998 and 2012, was founded in 1998 as the overall third tier of South African football. The competition is regulated by ...

side

FC Buffalo FC Buffalo is an American soccer club based in Buffalo, New York, United States, with teams in men's and women's soccer. Founded in 2009, the men's team plays in the USL League Two, a national amateur league at the fourth tier of the Americ ...

. At the end of the season, he attracted interest from

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

Superettan Superettan (; ) is an association football league and the second highest league in the Swedish football league system, league system of Swedish football, Swedish men's football. Contested by 16 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and rel ...

club,

Landskrona BoIS Landskrona Boll och Idrottsällskap (, locally referred to as BoIS) is a Swedish professional football club located in Landskrona, Scania, which currently plays in Superettan, the second league tier of football in Sweden. The club was formed ...

which already had a

n in their team with Bradley Ralani. He also received an offer from

but the deal was put on ice after they found out about his high salary. He was also on the verge of being loaned to

Ajax Cape Town Cape Town Spurs F.C. (formerly known as Ajax Cape Town) is a South African professional football club based in Parow in the city of Cape Town that plays in the National First Division. Dutch Eredivisie club AFC Ajax was their parent club and ma ...

Moroka Swallows Moroka Swallows Football Club (often referred to as Swallows or The Birds) is a South African professional football club based in Soweto, Johannesburg, in the Gauteng province. Founded in 1947, Swallows are one of the original two Soweto clubs ...

. Masango started off the 2014–15 season with a brace in a 4–0 win over

in the MTN8. He scored his first league goal of 2014–15 in a 2–1 win over

on 13 August 2013. He also scored a solitary goal against

Bloemfontein Celtic Bloemfontein Celtic Football Club (simply known as Celtic) is a South African soccer club based in Bloemfontein. Bloemfontein Celtic had a large fan base in the Free State and competed in the Premiership before selling their status to Royal ...

in the 81st minute on 19 August 2014. On 11 September 2014, Masango and

Stuart Baxter Stuart William Baxter (born 16 August 1953) is an English-Scottish football coach and former player who currently manages Boavista in the Primeira Liga. Born in England of Scottish parentage, and brought up in both countries, Baxter played pr ...

were named ABSA Premiership Player and Coach of the Month. After being rested against

University of Pretoria The University of Pretoria (, ) is a multi-campus public university, public research university in Pretoria, the administrative and ''de facto'' capital of South Africa. The university was established in 1908 as the Pretoria campus of the Johan ...

, he played in the 1–0 win over

Orlando Pirates Orlando Pirates Football Club, referred to as simply Pirates, is a South African professional football club based in Orlando, Soweto that plays in the top-tier system of Football in South Africa known as Betway Premiership. The team plays i ...

in the MTN8 2014 Final. Masango scored a solitary penalty goal in the 45th minute against

Maritzburg United Durban City are a South African soccer club based in the city of Durban. Prior to the start of the 2024–25 National First Division, they were called Maritzburg United, and were based in the city of Pietermaritzburg. They were promoted to t ...

on 27 September 2014. Masango eventually attracted the interest of

Ligue 1 Ligue 1 (; ), officially known as Ligue 1 McDonald's France, McDonald's for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in France and the highest level of the French football league system. Administered by the Ligue de ...

club

Rennes Rennes (; ; Gallo language, Gallo: ''Resnn''; ) is a city in the east of Brittany in Northwestern France at the confluence of the rivers Ille and Vilaine. Rennes is the prefecture of the Brittany (administrative region), Brittany Regions of F ...

which hoped to sign him in January or the end of 2014–15 shouldn't his contract be extended. The club planned to send a representative for the then upcoming

Soweto derby The Soweto Derby is a football rivalry between Premiership teams Kaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates in South Africa. It was first contested on 24 January 1970. Matches between the two rivals attract a large fanbase. The rivalry is recognise ...

but was postponed as it was on the day of the funeral of the late South African national team captain

Senzo Meyiwa Senzo Robert Meyiwa (24 January 1984 – 26 October 2014) was a South African professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper for and captained both Orlando Pirates in the Premier Soccer League, and the South Africa national team. He ...

. The club later revealed that Rennes would send a scout to watch him at the

2015 African Cup of Nations The 2015 Africa Cup of Nations, known as the Orange Africa Cup of Nations, Equatorial Guinea 2015 for sponsorship reasons, was the 30th staging of the Africa Cup of Nations, the international men's football championship of Africa. It was orga ...

. On his last Chiefs match, Masango scored a header on 9 May 2015 in a 2–0 win over

Chippa United Chippa United Football Club (often known as Chilli boys or Chippa) is a South African professional football club based in East London in the Eastern Cape province, having previously been based in Nyanga suburb of the city of Cape Town. The club ...

. Masango attracted the likes of

, Anorthorsis Famagusta and

Hapoel Tel Aviv Hapoel Tel Aviv () is a sports club in Israel, founded in the 1920s, and part of the Hapoel association. It runs several sports clubs and teams in Tel Aviv which have competed in a variety of sports over the years, such as football, basketball, w ...

Randers

On 13 August 2015 it was announced that Masango had reach an agreement with

Randers Randers () is a city in Randers Municipality, Central Denmark Region on the Jutland peninsula. It is List of cities and towns in Denmark, Denmark's sixth-largest city, with a population of 64,511 ().AaB AAB, AaB or Aab may refer to: Aviation * Abelag Aviation in Belgium * Air Assault Badge, a United States Army military badge * Anti-aircraft battery, a weapons system component for anti-aircraft warfare * IATA airport code for Arrabury Airport ...

where he scored the second goal in the 82nd minute.

Style of play

Masango is of lean and diminutive build.

Muhsin Ertugral Muhsin (also spelled Mohsen, Mohsin, Mehsin, or Muhsen, ) is a masculine Arabic given name. The first person known to have the name "Muhsin" was Muhsin ibn Ali, the son of Ali ibn Abi Talib and Fatimah bint Muhammad. Islamic term In Arabic, it ...

who signed Masango in 2007 compared him to ''maverick genius'' Jabu Pule who he said had ''ability to read and change the game, and create spaces as well as bravely take on defenders''. Masango plays as a right winger, secondary striker and also as an attacking midfielder. Masango was also described as Le

James James may refer to: People * James (given name) * James (surname) * James (musician), aka Faruq Mahfuz Anam James, (born 1964), Bollywood musician * James, brother of Jesus * King James (disambiguation), various kings named James * Prince Ja ...

Noir. FifaPlayerRatings.com suggests that Masango would excel more as a

forward Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward. Forward may also refer to: People *Forward (surname) Sports * Forward (association football) * Forward (basketball), including: ** Point forward ** Power forward (basketball) ** Smal ...

for his "better finishing ability than most midfielders" and "above average balance" and ranks him in the top 20% of attacking players in

FIFA 15 ''FIFA 15'' is a football simulation video game developed by EA Canada and published by Electronic Arts under the EA Sports label. It was released on 23 September 2014 in North America, 25 September in Europe and Australia and 26 September in the ...

and the 270th best Right Midfielder in the game.

Personal life

Masango has a diploma in General Management and is currently studying project management at Boston City Campus.

International career

International goals

:''Scores and results list South Africa's goal tally first.''

U-17 and U-20

Masango has the unusual distinction of having scored on his debut for every national side he has represented. He made three appearances, scoring twice, for South Africa U-17 before moving on to the U-20 team, where he played four times, three of these games coming at the

2009 FIFA U-20 World Cup The 2009 FIFA U-20 World Cup was the 17th edition of the FIFA U-20 World Cup, which was hosted by Egypt from 24 September to 16 October 2009. The tournament was initially going to take place between 10 and 31 July. However, the 2009 FIFA Confede ...

. Masango scored a consolation in the 6–1 defeat to Germany U-20 on 5 September 2009, in a World Cup warm-up match.

U-20 appearances and goals

U-23

Masango played for the U-23 team, scoring on his debut in the 2–1 win over

Zimbabwe file:Zimbabwe, relief map.jpg, upright=1.22, Zimbabwe, relief map Zimbabwe, officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Bots ...

to ensure South Africa's qualification for the

All Africa Games The African Games, formally known as the All-Africa Games or the Pan African Games, are a continental multi-sport event held every four years, organized by the African Union with the Association of National Olympic Committees of Africa and the ...

. The midfielder also scored against

Mauritius Mauritius, officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island country in the Indian Ocean, about off the southeastern coast of East Africa, east of Madagascar. It includes the main island (also called Mauritius), as well as Rodrigues, Ag ...

on 26 May 2011 in a 1–0 friendly win, and against

Botswana Botswana, officially the Republic of Botswana, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Botswana is topographically flat, with approximately 70 percent of its territory part of the Kalahari Desert. It is bordered by South Africa to the sou ...

in a 5–0 victory on 18 March 2011. He made his senior debut on 17 July 2013 on the eve of his birthday against

Lesotho Lesotho, formally the Kingdom of Lesotho and formerly known as Basutoland, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Entirely surrounded by South Africa, it is the largest of only three sovereign enclave and exclave, enclaves in the world, t ...

and was unfortunate having not scored on debut like he did for the junior national teams. He scored in his second match in the

2013 COSAFA Cup The 2013 COSAFA Cup, sponsored by South African Breweries and officially named the 2013 COSAFA Castle Cup, was the 14th edition of the COSAFA Cup, an international football competition consisting of national teams of member nations of the Council ...

3rd and 4th place playoff on 20 July 2013 against

. South Africa won 2-1 finishing third with a

bronze medal A bronze medal in sports and other similar areas involving competition is a medal made of bronze awarded to the third-place finisher of contests or competitions such as the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, etc. The outright winner receives ...

. Masango earned a call-up after his good form for

AFCON The Africa Cup of Nations, commonly abbreviated as AFCON and officially known as the TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations for sponsorship reasons, is the main biennial international men's association football competition in Africa. It is san ...

qualifiers against

Nigeria Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...

and

Sudan Sudan, officially the Republic of the Sudan, is a country in Northeast Africa. It borders the Central African Republic to the southwest, Chad to the west, Libya to the northwest, Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the east, Eritrea and Ethiopi ...

. He claimed that his call up was "destiny" and that Sudan was his lucky charm. Masango's first call-up in international football came nine years ago against Sudan when he represented the South Africa Under-17 team in a 2005 Under-17 Youth Championship qualifier. The game was played at the same

Al-Merrikh Stadium Al-Merrikh Stadium, also known as the Red Castle, is a multi-use stadium in Omdurman, Sudan, used mostly for football matches and also sometimes for athletics. Established in 1962. The stadium is used mostly for football (soccer), football games ...

where South Africa played their 2015 African Nations Cup Group A opener against the Sudan. He played in the 3–0 win over

and 0–0 draw over

. Masango scored a stunning goal referred to as a "stepback volley" against

Ghana Ghana, officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It is situated along the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, and shares borders with Côte d’Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, and Togo to t ...

in the

Group C final clash and made rounds in

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

and has been compared to

Colombia Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country primarily located in South America with Insular region of Colombia, insular regions in North America. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the north, Venezuel ...

's James Rodriguez famous volley in the 2–0 victory over

Uruguay Uruguay, officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay, is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast, while bordering the Río de la Plata to the south and the A ...

in last in the

2014 FIFA World Cup The 2014 FIFA World Cup was the 20th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for list of men's national association football teams, men's national Association football, football teams organised by FIFA. It took place in Brazil fr ...

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

. Bleacher Report described the goal as "ridiculous, outrageous and impossibly perfect".

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Masango, Mandla 1989 births Living people People from Thembisile Hani Local Municipality South African men's soccer players South African expatriate men's soccer players South Africa men's international soccer players Kaizer Chiefs F.C. players Randers FC players South African Premier Division players Danish Superliga players Men's association football midfielders 2015 Africa Cup of Nations players Expatriate men's footballers in Denmark South African expatriate sportspeople in Denmark 21st-century South African sportsmen