Sports / Soccer
Zimbabwean starlet joins Leeds United
01 May 2013 at 05:57hrs | Views
TALENTED young Zimbabwean soccer player Munyaradzi Mbanje was recently officially accepted as a first-year scholar at the academy of English Championship side Leeds United.
The English Championship is one rung below the Barclays English Premiership. According to Leeds United's official website, Mbanje, who turns 17 this year, is among seven young players who will take a major step in their bids to become professional footballers this summer after accepting scholarship offers from the club.
Next season's first year scholarship will comprise of Mbanje, Isaac Asseno, Liam Bennett, Piteu Crouz, Lewis Cook, Tom lyman and Euan Mulhern, according to Leeds United's official website.
They will officially be full-time footballers at the Leeds United academy during the 2013-14 season in England. A number of those players, including Mbanje, have already been involved with the Under-18s this season - England Under-16 international Cook was the club's scorer at Liverpool in the FA Youth Cup - and Elite Development coach Neil Redfearn says the young players will be educated well by Under-18s coach and former club captain, Richard Naylor.
"Richard is doing well," said Redfearn. "He's a young guy whose coming into it. He knows the club and he's worked hard. He has had a good group as well.
"The second years played a lot of 18s football last year, your Dawsons Parkins, Mowatts and Walters, and they will be good players. They have made a big difference.
"The first years have done really well and they will form the basis of the Under-18s next season."
Mbanje's father, Trymore, recently signed his son's scholarship contract with Leeds United and he posted on his Facebook wall a number of pictures at the signing ceremony where he also had a chance of meeting with the club's owner Ken Bates, who is the former chairman of English Premiership giants Chelsea.
Trymore Mbanje also posted a message, saying "Tapinda, tapinda. Yessssssss", after signing his son's contract at Leeds United at the weekend. A UK-based Zimbabwean coach, Phillip Zulu, who groomed Munya and helped him to find his way to the Leeds United academy, also attended the signing ceremony and congratulated the young player on his latest achievement.
"Well done, keep the good work all the way to the top. This is the start of hardwork and all the fruits of life. May God bless you in everything you do.
" . . .It was day of celebrating achievements by our own Zim player, Munya, who has graduated from academy football to youth and possibly pro football. I am glad he has made it and I hope he will do well in the future," said Zulu.
Munya, touted to be the next Joel "Jubilee" Shambo, is a product of the Aces Youth Academy here in Harare and was late last year offered a two-year scholarship at Leeds United after he impressed the club's junior coaches while playing for their Under-16 side.
The talented Mufakose-born player was initially scheduled to start his two-year scholarship at Leeds United next month but was "fast-tracked" to the club's youth academy in January this year.
But Munya will officially start his scholarship at Leeds United's academy next month with the hope of signing his first professional contract with the club during his two-year scholarship term.
During his first year as a scholar at the Leeds United academy, Munya will not be going to school instead he will be going to the club's academy daily, all expenses paid for and he will be given allowances.
And if Munya manages to break into the Leeds United's first team, there are clauses to be triggered and this will see the club signing him on as a professional footballer within two years. Munya has been staying in England for just over a year and has been featuring for Leeds United's junior teams for the past year following his arrival on the English shores from Zimbabwe to join his family.
Upon his arrival in England, Munya first worked under UK-based Zimbabwean coach Zulu who, last year, described the talented young player as "the next big thing for Zimbabwean football after the late great former Warriors and CAPS United captain Joel 'Jubilee' Shambo."
Zulu also further described Munya as a player who has a high level of technique and football understanding that is beyond his age.
And it will be no big surprise if Munya makes it into the Leeds United first team as the English club academies are coming under increased scrutiny since the implementation of the EPPP - Elite Player Performance Plan - and this season, has already seen the introduction of Sam Byram to the club's first team. Dominic Poleon and Chris Dawson have both been in the first team squad. A number of Under-18s, including Munya, have made an impact in the Development Squad, and some Under-16s have stepped into the Under-18s, according to the Leeds United website.
"The Academy is thriving," it recently quoted the club's Elite Development coach Redfearn as saying. "We've changed things around. We've worked on the coaching programme and the club philosophy for the Academy. The thing is now for the kids to get the chance.
"We have some capable kids coming through. Sam Byram is the tip of the iceberg. There's kids coming through who will make a similar impact. The future is bright and it's about the timing being right."
The English Championship is one rung below the Barclays English Premiership. According to Leeds United's official website, Mbanje, who turns 17 this year, is among seven young players who will take a major step in their bids to become professional footballers this summer after accepting scholarship offers from the club.
Next season's first year scholarship will comprise of Mbanje, Isaac Asseno, Liam Bennett, Piteu Crouz, Lewis Cook, Tom lyman and Euan Mulhern, according to Leeds United's official website.
They will officially be full-time footballers at the Leeds United academy during the 2013-14 season in England. A number of those players, including Mbanje, have already been involved with the Under-18s this season - England Under-16 international Cook was the club's scorer at Liverpool in the FA Youth Cup - and Elite Development coach Neil Redfearn says the young players will be educated well by Under-18s coach and former club captain, Richard Naylor.
"Richard is doing well," said Redfearn. "He's a young guy whose coming into it. He knows the club and he's worked hard. He has had a good group as well.
"The second years played a lot of 18s football last year, your Dawsons Parkins, Mowatts and Walters, and they will be good players. They have made a big difference.
"The first years have done really well and they will form the basis of the Under-18s next season."
Mbanje's father, Trymore, recently signed his son's scholarship contract with Leeds United and he posted on his Facebook wall a number of pictures at the signing ceremony where he also had a chance of meeting with the club's owner Ken Bates, who is the former chairman of English Premiership giants Chelsea.
Trymore Mbanje also posted a message, saying "Tapinda, tapinda. Yessssssss", after signing his son's contract at Leeds United at the weekend. A UK-based Zimbabwean coach, Phillip Zulu, who groomed Munya and helped him to find his way to the Leeds United academy, also attended the signing ceremony and congratulated the young player on his latest achievement.
"Well done, keep the good work all the way to the top. This is the start of hardwork and all the fruits of life. May God bless you in everything you do.
" . . .It was day of celebrating achievements by our own Zim player, Munya, who has graduated from academy football to youth and possibly pro football. I am glad he has made it and I hope he will do well in the future," said Zulu.
Munya, touted to be the next Joel "Jubilee" Shambo, is a product of the Aces Youth Academy here in Harare and was late last year offered a two-year scholarship at Leeds United after he impressed the club's junior coaches while playing for their Under-16 side.
The talented Mufakose-born player was initially scheduled to start his two-year scholarship at Leeds United next month but was "fast-tracked" to the club's youth academy in January this year.
But Munya will officially start his scholarship at Leeds United's academy next month with the hope of signing his first professional contract with the club during his two-year scholarship term.
During his first year as a scholar at the Leeds United academy, Munya will not be going to school instead he will be going to the club's academy daily, all expenses paid for and he will be given allowances.
And if Munya manages to break into the Leeds United's first team, there are clauses to be triggered and this will see the club signing him on as a professional footballer within two years. Munya has been staying in England for just over a year and has been featuring for Leeds United's junior teams for the past year following his arrival on the English shores from Zimbabwe to join his family.
Upon his arrival in England, Munya first worked under UK-based Zimbabwean coach Zulu who, last year, described the talented young player as "the next big thing for Zimbabwean football after the late great former Warriors and CAPS United captain Joel 'Jubilee' Shambo."
Zulu also further described Munya as a player who has a high level of technique and football understanding that is beyond his age.
And it will be no big surprise if Munya makes it into the Leeds United first team as the English club academies are coming under increased scrutiny since the implementation of the EPPP - Elite Player Performance Plan - and this season, has already seen the introduction of Sam Byram to the club's first team. Dominic Poleon and Chris Dawson have both been in the first team squad. A number of Under-18s, including Munya, have made an impact in the Development Squad, and some Under-16s have stepped into the Under-18s, according to the Leeds United website.
"The Academy is thriving," it recently quoted the club's Elite Development coach Redfearn as saying. "We've changed things around. We've worked on the coaching programme and the club philosophy for the Academy. The thing is now for the kids to get the chance.
"We have some capable kids coming through. Sam Byram is the tip of the iceberg. There's kids coming through who will make a similar impact. The future is bright and it's about the timing being right."
Source - theherald
