South Africa snow brings Siphiwe Tshabalala’s Erzurum memories back to life

Siphiwe Tshabalala has revisited his snowy spell in Turkiye after freezing weather, heavy rain and snowfall swept across parts of South Africa this week.

The former Kaizer Chiefs midfielder and Bafana Bafana international shared a series of throwback photographs from his time in Erzurum, where he experienced a markedly different winter during his playing career.

Tshabalala reflected on the memories in a caption accompanying the images, writing: “Since it’s snowing in some parts of the country, let me throw it back to my time in Erzurum, Turkey.”

The photographs show the former attacker appearing at ease in the wintry conditions. In one image, he poses beside a rugged Land Rover Defender, while another captures him relaxing in the snow.

His post comes as a powerful cold front and a cut-off low bring a combination of snow, rain, strong winds and bitterly cold temperatures to several areas of South Africa.

For Tshabalala, the weather has provided an opportunity to look back on the only season he spent playing in Turkiye.

Kaizer Chiefs confirmed his long-awaited move abroad in 2018, bringing his more than 10-year association with the club to an end. The midfielder joined Turkish Super Lig side BB Erzurumspor after spending over a decade with Amakhosi.

The move represented Tshabalala’s switch to European football, but his time in Turkiye lasted only one season before he returned to South Africa.

Erzurum, where he spent that period of his career, is now back in the spotlight for Tshabalala as snowfall once again affects parts of his home country.

The images offer fans a glimpse of the former player adapting to the conditions during his Turkish adventure, from standing beside the Land Rover Defender to enjoying the snow itself.

Tshabalala’s post was shared as South Africa dealt with a particularly severe spell of winter weather. The cold front and cut-off low have combined to produce disruptive conditions across several parts of the country, including snowfall, rain and strong winds.

His return to those photographs also recalls a significant moment in his career. After more than a decade at Kaizer Chiefs, Tshabalala finally made the move overseas in 2018, joining BB Erzurumspor in the Turkish Super Lig.

The stay was brief, however, with the former Bafana Bafana star returning to South Africa after a single season.

With snow now falling in parts of the country, Tshabalala has used the changing weather to revisit his memories of Erzurum and offer supporters a personal reminder of his time abroad.