Sundowns praised for signing a diamond: ‘He has something other players don’t have’

Bafana Bafana and Mamelodi Sundowns defender Khulumani Ndamane has been praised by former TS Galaxy coach Adnan Beganovic who has termed him as a diamond and special talent.

The 22-year-old was snapped up by Masandawana in January owing to his exploits while with the Rockets.

His rise saw him cement his place in the South Africa national team, and was even part of the team for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Ex-TS Galaxy coach Adnan Beganovic has shed more light on the defender.

Ndamane had a special talent

“When I saw him for the first time in our training sessions, I immediately said that he had special talent. He has something that other players don’t have. It is easy to see,” Beganovic said as quoted by Soccer Laduma.

“He has a beautiful pass between the lines and can break one or two lines easily. He can play that pass naturally. He also has a beautiful long ball and can switch the play like a sniper. He has those skills.

“His strength is not his speed. His strength is how he reads the game. He can predict situations before they happen on the field and position himself so that he can react better,” he added.

Move to Sundowns a couple of steps forward

Beganovic further explained why he believes joining Masandawana was vital for the centre-back.

“He thinks a lot about the game. He is also a real leader on the field. He plays with heart and always wants to win, even in training,” the 43-year-old continued.

“His move to Sundowns was beautiful for him. It was a couple of steps forward, although it was a big loss for us at TS Galaxy. He was our diamond. He helped keep the defensive line together. He was a leader at the back, he worked a lot and communicated a lot.

“When we lost him, we felt it. After that, we had that difficult run where we collected only two points from nine games. For me, the main problem was that we could not find enough good players to replace him properly at that time,” Beganovic concluded.