admin
Tadious Manyepo Sports Reporter
ZIMBABWEAN starlet Tavonga Kuleya has penned a two-year professional contract with English League Two side Doncaster Rovers.
The attacker started at the club as a 14-year-old and worked his way up to the Under-18s until completing his scholarship earlier this summer.
And he has never looked back with the Zimbabwean impressive in those age-groups, prompting the club to hand him a professional contract.
He worked under Gary McSheffrey in the Under-18s set-up and has impressed during pre-season, having trained with the senior squad while he recovered from a shoulder injury sustained last season.
The 18-year-old made his senior debut in the EFL Trophy win over Scunthorpe United last season, before coming off the bench against Crewe Alexandra in the same competition.
Kuleya will wear the No. 30 shirt for the 2022/23 season. He was quoted on the team’s website expressing his excitement over the development.
“I’ve spent a lot of time at the training ground this summer, everyone has been really positive and it’s a good mood within the group,” he said.
“I’ve learnt a lot from spending time around the senior professionals with everything they do on and off the field.”
McSheffrey hailed the Zimbabwean for his work ethic.
“He’s put a lot of hard work in to get into the position he’s in now, he’s come in during pre-season and really impressed.
“We’ve managed to get him minutes and he’s looked good in those, so we’re pleased to have him signed here. I’m delighted for him, he’s come back from a shoulder injury, and he’s come back this summer and played and trained well and grafted for this opportunity.
“He has got something different to others. When I had him in the U18s I challenged him all the time to add more goals and assists to his game.
“He’s very exciting on the eye and physically he’s developing well. In a couple of years, I can see him being a strong, physical, fast man.” Kuleya is a product of one of Zimbabwe’s best junior football coaches Philip Zulu who coached him from the age of six in Leeds, UK.
”I started working with him (Kuleya) in the UK when he was six. He’s a very talented young player with a bright future ahead of him…. If he keeps his feet on the ground,” Zulu told The Herald yesterday.
Online Reporter