South Africa made history when captain Thembi Kgatlana scored the game-winning goal in the 92nd minute to set up a meeting with the Netherlands and send Italy home.

Before Kgatlana’s astonishing late intervention, Italy’s Arianna Caruso thought she had salvaged the draw they needed to advance with 16 minutes remaining.

At the conclusion, the Italians were in tears as their opponents celebrated a historic victory.

Caruso scored a penalty in the 11th minute to put Italy ahead, but they conceded an equaliser in ridiculous circumstances 32 minutes later.

Without looking up to see where Francesca Durante was, the Italy defender Benedetta Orsi passed the ball back to her custodian.

However, Durante was nowhere near where the backpass went, and the ball ended up in the Italian goal for an obvious own goal.

Moments later, Italy hit the post during a goalmouth scramble, but there was little to choose between the teams at the Wellington halftime break.

The African champions knew they had to score in the second half, so they went on the offensive.

67 minutes later, South Africa took the lead when captain Kgatlana assisted Hildah Magaia in putting the ball into the net.

South Africa almost scored a third goal, but Durante made a spectacular save. Minutes later, what appeared to be the decisive moment occurred.

After an excruciatingly lengthy VAR review, Caruso’s second goal for Italy tied the score at 2-2, bringing Italy level.

In the second minute of injury time at the end of the match, the Italian defence disappeared once more, allowing Kgatlana to score and advance South Africa.

Photo by Sydney Mahlangu/BackpagePix

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BAMBANANI MBANE – Mamelodi Sundowns Ladies

Banyana have for many years relied on veteran centre-backs Janine van Wyk and Noko Matlou in the heart of defence, but Mbane has made the position her own in recent times.

The 33-year-old, herself no spring chicken, has cemented her position as a ‘must-have’ at the back for coach Desiree Ellis and was a key element of their 2022 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations success.

Her calmness and assured displays will certainly be needed, as will her overseas experience, having converted from a midfielder in her earlier days, which included a stint at Belarus side Dinamo Minsk.

She has also been an absolute rock for Mamelodi Sundowns in the past few years, helping them to African Women’s Champions League success in 2021.

REFILOE JANE – US Sassuolo

Jane is the anchor in the midfield and a player with the vision to unlock any defence, a silky performer, but also a workhorse in the middle of the park.

She was discovered as a 16-year-old at the Gauteng Future Championships competition in 2009 and soon became a fixture in the national team, where she has been a regular starter for the past 11 years.

She played for Mamelodi Sundowns before later moving to Australian side Canberra United, and then AC Milan in Italy, where she spent three seasons before a transfer to Sassuolo for the 2022/23 campaign.

That experience of playing in Serie A should certainly come in handy when Banyana come face-to-face with the Italians in the pool stages.

LINDA MOTLHALO – Glasgow City

Motlhalo has the skill to control any midfield and now has vast experience of playing overseas, adding significant football intelligence to her game.

Former Banyana coach Vera Pauw said Motlhalo could become one of the leading players in the world given her ability, and while that has not happened yet, she is still only 24 and has plenty of growth left in her.

She has already played in the best domestic competition in the world, the National Women’s Soccer League, with Houston Dash, and also turned out for Beijing BG Phoenix in China and Swedish club Djurgårdens.

Motlhalo moved to top Scottish side Glasgow City in 2023 and has hit the ground running, proving she has goals in her game, but is also a creator for others.

THEMBI KGATLANA – Racing Louisville FC

Kgatlana’s game is all about pace and skill and she must be one of the quickest forwards in the women’s game, though just how badly a long- term Achilles injury will affect her remains to be seen.

She is able to run in behind the defences and also has a rocket right boot, as she showed with her goal against Spain in the 2019 World Cup in France.

The 27-year-old was a teammate of Motlhalo’s in Houston and Beijing, but also played for Benfica in Portugal and turned out for and Spanish clubs Eibar and Atlético Madrid.

She made the move back to the United States last year when she joined Racing Louisville, but that Achilles-tendon injury struck at the 2022 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations and she has only recently been back in action.

But she is a player with a real x-factor and a huge weapon for Banyana.

JERMAINE SEOPOSENWE – FC Juárez

The 29-year-old forward has been in and out of the Banyana side since her debut as a teenager in 2010, but is back in favour and brings a wealth of experience to the team.

She currently plays in Mexico for FC Juárez, who she joined last year having spent a couple of seasons in Portugal with Sporting Braga.

She is quick, good with the ball at her feet and has an eye for goal, and along with Kgatlana can form a pacey front two.

The well-travelled Seoposenwe has also played college football in the United States, as well as in Spain and Lithuania. She will be among the more experienced Banyana players at the World Cup.

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The 2018 African Women’s Footballer of the Year was stretchered off in the second half of the 1-0 win over Botswana, with the Banyana medical team now confirming she unfortunately sustained a ruptured achilles tendon.

“Thembi Kgatlana sustained a complete rupture of the left achilles tendon against Botswana, which was confirmed by the MRI scan this morning,” Dr Rodney Mokoka told www.safa.net.

“Unfortunately she will be out for the whole Wafcon 2022 tournament and she is due for an operation back home in South Africa.

We send our love and support to #TeamSouthAfrica’s star Thembi Kgatlana ❤️

We wish the 2018 #TotalEnergiesWAFCON top scorer a speedy and full recovery 🙏#TotalEnergiesWAFCON2022 | #EmpoweringOurGame pic.twitter.com/g2xO4rVvab

— #TotalEnergiesWAFCON2022 (@CAFwomen) July 11, 2022

“Post-operation healing will be guided by certain milestones that we have to achieve; of course, a comprehensive functional rehabilitation programme will be in place for her but the quicker we achieve those milestones the quicker she will be back on the field of play.”

Mokoka also confirmed that Jermaine Seoposenwe will be able to return to play after she picked up an injury on Sunday.

“Jermain Seoposenwe sustained a soft-tissue injury of the ankle against Botswana. She is doing well and will be available for training tomorrow [on Tuesday],” Mokoka added.

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The South African Women’s national team currently has six players nominated for this prestigious award, which is the most by any country.

All the six nominees were part of the Banyana Banyana squad that edged out rivals Nigeria in their opening Group C fixture in the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations tournament.

Making it onto the list of nominees for South Africa is as follows, Andile Dlamini, Bambanani Mbane, Thembi Kgatlana, Jermaine Sesopisenwe, Refiloe Jane and Linda Motlhalo.

The official ceremony will be held on 21 July 2022 in Rabat, Morocco ahead of the final of the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) that is currently taking place in Morocco until 23 July 2022.

Here are South Africa’s list of nominees:

Andile Dlamini – Mamelodi Sundowns FC
Bambanani Mbane – Mamelodi Sundowns FC
Thembi Kgatlana – Racing Louisville FC
Jermaine Seoposenwe- SC Braga
Refiloe Jane – AC Milan
Linda Motlhalo- Djugardens IF

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Kgatlana has continued to break boundaries after winning the 2018 Caf African Footballer of the Year award and then catching the eye at the 2019 Fifa World Cup.

After short spells in the USA with Houston Dash and then in China with Beijing BG Phoenix, the 25-year-old was impressive at Benfica in Portugal before Spanish side Eibar lured her away for the 2020-21 season.

Kgatlana shone in Spain as she scored 10 goals in 21 league games, which led to Atleti chasing her signature.

“I am very happy to arrive at Atlético de Madrid. As a footballer you always dream of playing for the best clubs,” she said at her unveiling on Tuesday.

“My first goal is to be a team player and to work hard for the team. I am very happy to be able to join you soon, I can’t wait to meet you all.”

#BienvenidaKgatlana 🔴⚪ pic.twitter.com/qOAzCr3Ilk

— At. Madrid Femenino (@AtletiFemenino) July 6, 2021

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The Caf Women’s Player of the Year parted ways with Benfica last week and joined Eibar on a free transfer, after putting pen to paper on a one-year contract with the club.

The 24-year-old managed to score three goals in only three appearances for Luis Andrade’s team to help them to the Portuguese Taca de Liga final and league diadem, but announced her departure from Benfica after the season was suspended due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Kgatlana has become the latest South African to move to Spain after Nothando Vilakazi joined EDF Logrono and Amanda Mthandi signed for CDB Badajoz Feminino in recent weeks.

‘Thembi Kgatlana has become the latest reinforcement of the Eibar Sports Society women’s first team,’ read the statement on the club’s website as they confirmed the one-year deal.

‘The 24-year-old South African forward is an international for her country and in 2018 she was considered the best African player.’

La internacional sudafricana Thembi Kgatlana, nuevo fichaje armero para la #LigaIberdrola

Ongi etorri @Kgatlanathe1st! 👏https://t.co/hje4cJWBD2 pic.twitter.com/zfVvkA6O6p

— SD Eibar #DenokArmagin 💙❤️ (@SDEibar) July 21, 2020

Kgatlana helped Banyana Banyana qualify for their first-ever Fifa Women’s World Cup in France last year following her stellar performance at the AWCON tournament in Ghana in 2018, where Banyana lost to Nigeria on penalties in the final.

The Banyana Banyana star, who scored Banyana’s only goal in the World Cup, is a product of the Safa High Performance Centre and featured prominently for USA Houston Dash before moving to China’s Beijing BG Phoenix.

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The 23-year-old completed her move to Benfica from Beijing BG Phoenix last month after putting pen to paper on a permanent deal with the Portuguese club.

Kgatlana then made her debut earlier this month to help Benfica beat Sporting Braga 3-1 to advance to the next round of the Taça de Portugal.

The Banyana star then came on as a second-half substitute in the Taça de Portugal semi-finals triumph over Amora to net a brace in her second appearance for the Portuguese club.

WATCH: Kgatlana bags brace for Benfica

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The 23-year-old enjoyed a successful stint in China playing for Beijing Phoenix, scoring nine goals in all competitions, while helping them finish in fifth place in the Chinese Women’s Super League during the 2018-19 season.

The former African Player of the Year’s stellar performance at the Africa Women’s Cup of Nations helped Banyana qualify for their first-ever Fifa Women’s World Cup in France last year, where she scored South Africa’s only goal in their 3-1 defeat by Spain.

‘I am very excited to sign for Benfica. I thank the team, the president, and everyone for giving me the opportunity to come to Portugal and Benfica,’ Kgatlana told her new club’s official website.

‘Benfica is a great club in Portugal and in the world. I have already had the opportunity to see history and records, and for me, it is a great honour to be part of such a great club.

‘I am 23 years old, I come from South Africa, I play for the national team and now also for Benfica. I have 15 years of football, divided by the youth and senior classes.

‘I thank the fans for their support. We are in first place in the Championship and I ask that they continue to support so that at the end of the season we can lift the trophy.’

Benfica vice-president Fernando Tavares highlighted the qualities of the now red player, admitting he has ‘very high expectations’ of Houston Dash star.

‘We have very high expectations for Thembi. She was considered the best African of the year in 2019, she is a player with very strong characteristics, she is very fast, she can do one or two positions on the field, she can play nine be extreme. This acquisition will endow Benfica’s attack with several solutions to add to the ones we already have, considering what are the objectives of the time,’ Tavares said.

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READ: Pitso nominated for Caf African Coach of the Year

Kgatlana and Jane played a crucial role in guiding South Africa to the 2018 Africa Women’s Cup of Nations (AWCN) final where they narrowly missed out on claiming the trophy after their defeat by Nigeria late last year.

ALSO READ: Tau, Onyango nominated for Caf African Player of the Year

Following their exploits in the AWCN, Banyana qualified for the Fifa Women’s World Cup finals for the first time in the history of South African women’s football.

ALSO READ: Onyango, Zwane nominated for African Interclubs Player of the Year

They competed in the 2019 global tournament, hosted by France, where they failed to make it past the group stages after finishing fourth.

ALSO READ: Banyana, Ellis nominated for top Caf awards

African Women’s Player of the Year nominees:

· Ajara Nchout (Cameroon & Valerenga )

· Ange N’Guessan (Côte d’Ivoire & Tenerife)

· Asisat Oshoala (Nigeria & Barcelona)

· Chiamaka Nnadozie (Nigeria & Rivers Angels)

· Elizabeth Addo (Ghana & Jiangsu Suning)

· Gabrielle Ouguene (Cameroon & CSKA Moscow)

· Refiloe Jane (South Africa & AC Milan)

· Tabitha Chawinga (Malawi & Jiangsu Suning)

· Thembi Kgatlana (South Africa & Beijing Phoenix FC)

· Uchenna Kanu (Nigeria & Southeastern Fire)

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