Bafana midfielder maintains fine form with goal for Portuguese club

Bafana Bafana midfielder Sphephelo Sithole looks to be getting back to his brilliant best after scoring his second goal of the season for his Portuguese club Tondela.

Sithole was a second half substitute as Tondela faced Vila Real in the Portuguese top flight on Sunday and contributed the final goal as they thrashed their opponents 5-1 away.

Tondela opened the scoring in the first minute through Colombian forward Yefrei Rodriguez but the home side equalised through Chiquinho’s penalty after 30 minutes.

Sphephelo Sithole put the icing on Tondela’s cake

Liga Portugal game bertween SL Benfica and CD Tondela — Sphephelo Sithole seen during Liga Portugal game between SL Benfica and CD Tondela. Photo: Imago

However, any hopes of going to the break tied at 1-1 for Vila Real quickly disappeared as Tondela grabbed the second on the stroke of halftime through Portuguese defender Joao Ricardo Silva Afonso.

After the break, Tondela extended their lead through Brazilians Yarlen and Pedro Maranhao just one minute apart in the 55^th and 56^th minutes before Sithole completed the rout five minutes from time.

It was the second goal in seven games this season for Sithole whose first goal of the campaign was against Santa Clara on September 27.

Bafana midfielder suffered career-threatening injury

The South African international, who has started four games this season, was deemed not ready for 90 minutes on Sunday after returning from international duty when he played for Bafana Bafana in their matches against Zimbabwe and Rwanda as they qualified for the 2026 World Cup.

Sithole suffered a nasty injury while playing for Bafana Bafana in a 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against South Sudan in November 2024 which kept him out of action for 10 months while he managed just 51 minutes for his club last season.

The midfielder suffered a fracture to his tibia and fibula, which required surgery, in the match in Juba and needed a lot of time and support to recover as well as rehabilitation and returned to the national team ahead of the matches against Zimbabwe and Rwanda, starting against the Warriors, before coming off the bench as Hugo Broos’ men thrashed the Amavubi 3-0 to seal their World Cup ticket.