Ex-Pirates’ Zungu: What coach Maduka tells me

Having rediscovered his mojo at Magesi FC, former Orlando Pirates star Nkanyiso Zungu has commented on coach John Maduka’s influence on his career.

The 29-year-old player is finding his feet with the 2024 Carling Knockout champions after joining them in August 2025. He returned to the top-flight league of South Africa after having spent the previous season in the unfashionable second division with Pretoria Callies.

🐊NEXT MATCH🐊

We go against the bucs esgodini for Carling, where the cup history started

🆚: @orlandopirates
📅: Tuesday, 28 October 2025
🏟️: Orlando Stadium
⏰: 19:00
🎫: Open Ticket #dikwenatsameetse #carlingblacklabel #magesifc #bluenation pic.twitter.com/MjsZxP2Ke8

— Magesi Football Club (@Magesi_FC) October 22, 2025

The midfielder made what seemed a big career jump when he left Stellenbosch FC for the Buccaneers in 2022. However, his struggled with the Soweto giants, leading to his off-loading via a loan spell at Richards Bay FC.

Why Nkanyiso Zungu is showing flashes of brilliance again

Now Zungu is showing glimpses of his old self at Magesi. He showed his quality when he pulled the midfield string to walk off the Seshego Stadium pitch with a man-of-the-match accolade after a hard-fought 2-1 victory over TS Galaxy. The Betway Premiership game took place last Saturday.

The versatile attacker has since shared his delight at finding his feet in the squad for Dikwena Tša Meetse. He has made seven appearances with the Premier Soccer League side. Magesi.

“You have to work very hard to get back to this stage [the Premiership],” Zungu told the club’s media.

“But I’m getting used to it. I’m thankful that I’m pushing at training to get back to how things used to be [in the past]. Everything is okay [at the club].”

The seasoned midfielder partly attributed his improved form to the former Royal AM trainer Maduka.

“I’m very happy to be working with him. He’s a father figure to the players, and he’s pushing us at training, and he keeps telling us that when we play, we must stick to what we know and how we play,” he said.

“So, we must not change the way we play. It makes me happy to work under him.”

That Zungu is happy should be good news for Maduka, as he needs the best form from his midfielder when they face Pirates on Tuesday in a Telkom Knockout quarterfinal match at Orlando Stadium.