NAMIBIAN PLAYMAKER TURNING IT ON AT HIGHLANDS

goal when his side beat City 2-0 in the league at the start of December. He has scored four times in 15 starts in all competitions this season after missing the start of the campaign through injury - he netted the winner against Bloemfontein Celtic and scored in a 2-2 draw with Orlando Pirates last month. His form is no real surprise. He was top-scorer in the National First Division last season with 15 goals as Highlands won promotion by finishing an incredible 19 points clear.

Shalulile is making up for lost time in the top-flight with his first season at this level stunted by injury in 2016-17, when the Tembisa-based side were relegated.

Like Mvala, he stuck with the club after they went down despite plenty of interest in his services, and is reaping the rewards now as one of their star performers.

Since arriving in South African football in 2015, he has 27 goals in 67 starts, an excellent return for a player who is more a playmaker than an out-and-out forward.

Shalulile played for Tura Magic FC in his homeland and was part of the Namibia under-19 side that won the prestigious Bayhill Cup in Cape Town in 2011.

He really rose to prominence though when he helped Namibia win the 2015 COSAFA Cup, with Highlands moving swiftly after the tournament to bring him into South African football.

It is a telling statistic that Highlands have only lost three league games in which Shalulile has started this season and two of those were against powerhouses Wits and Mamelodi Sundowns, a perfect illustration of his value to the side.