Ngwenya’s record-breaking AmaZulu start puts striker in transfer spotlight

Thandolwenkosi Ngwenya has scored nine goals in seven matches for AmaZulu FC, accounting for 75% of the club’s goals this season and fuelling speculation about his future.

The Zimbabwean striker, who is in his second season with Usuthu, has found the net in all six of AmaZulu’s league games so far. That run is the best start to a new campaign by a player in the PSL era, while scoring in six consecutive league matches from the beginning of a season is also a new domestic record.

Ngwenya’s next appearance will come when AmaZulu travel to face Polokwane City, with the 23-year-old needing one more goal to reach double figures for the season.

AmaZulu have scored 12 goals in total, and Ngwenya has been directly involved in 10 of them. He has scored nine, while also providing the assist for Mlondi Mbanjwa’s goal. The club’s other scorers are Taariq Fielies and Nkosikhona Radebe.

His nine goals also represent the highest proportion of a club’s goals recorded at this stage of a new season, based on goals scored alone. The 75% figure highlights how heavily AmaZulu have relied on Ngwenya in attack.

He is averaging a goal every 61 minutes, another exceptional return in domestic football. At that rate, Ngwenya is projected to score at least 20 league goals and has the opportunity to challenge Collins Mbesuma’s record of 25 league goals, set during the 2004/05 season.

Ngwenya has 24 league matches remaining for AmaZulu this season. He would need to score 19 more goals in those games to establish a new record.

His form at club level has also brought international recognition. New Spanish coach Ramon Catala has selected him for the Warriors squad for upcoming 2027 AFCON qualifiers against Sierra Leone and DR Congo.

The call-up rewards a striking opening to the season in which Ngwenya has carried much of AmaZulu’s attacking responsibility while placing himself among the leading forwards in domestic football.