Lawrence Maphosa
ARIEL Sibanda is indeed a remarkable figure in Zimbabwean football, holding numerous records and accolades that highlight his exceptional career as a goalkeeper.
He has been one goalkeeper whose achievements earned him legendary status at Highlanders where he spent 18 years at the big club.
He was the first player to win four Goalkeeper of the Year Awards: 2012, 2018, 2019, 2023, setting a new record in the Zimbabwean football history.
He is also one of the longest serving players at Highlanders with over 400 caps for the club since his debut in 2009.
One of his notable achievements such as clean sheets to his belt in 2018, 16 clean sheets in 28 league matches, 2019 he had 19 clean sheets across league and cup games, he is also one of the few goalkeepers to feature in the country’s Soccer Star of the Year calendar three times.
Sibanda collected 35 medals, including multiple Independence Trophy wins and other prestigious titles during his illustrious career.
Sibanda developed a knack of scoring penalty kicks, taking all the responsibilities of a leader in the team as a captain of the side.
He filled the shoes of former captain and goalkeeper of the team Tapuwa Kapini and Washington At uni who were great players at Bosso.
He missed a few spotkicks (9).
Eight were league goals while one was a cup goal.
The former national team goalkeeper cumulatively had the highest number of clean sheets in the last five years of his career.
He was also an outstanding penalty stopper, he saved a of penalties during his 18 years of service at Highlanders, he kept his side on the safe side when he pulled a number of crucial spotkick saves that kept his club ahead of opponents notable in cup games mostly.
He had a patchy performance for the national football team where he only collected five caps and made one appearance in the Chan finals held in Cameroon a few years ago.
Sibanda’s exceptional contributions have undeniably earned him legendary status in Zimbabwean football.
