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COSAFA PLAYER PROFILE - BENJANI MWARUWARI (ZIMBABWE)
He is one of the most successful strikers to come out of the COSAFA region in recent years and Zimbabwean hitman Benjani Mwaruwari is hoping for the chance to finish his illustrious career on a high.
With a fine goalscoring record for both club and country, the 30-year-old, who currently plays for Manchester City in the English Premiership, did his ‘apprenticeship’ both back home and in South Africa before heading off to Europe.
Born in Bulawayo to parents of Malawian descent, he started out at Lulu Rovers, Zimba Africa Rivers, University of Zimbabwe and Air Zimbabwe Jets in his homeland, before he was discovered by Jomo Sono while playing for the Brave Warriors against Bafana Bafana in 1999.
Sono brought him to Jomo Cosmos, where he was an immediate success, scoring goals and winning the 2000/01 Premiership Footballer of the Year award.
He won a loan move to Grasshoppers of Zurich, Switzerland, where he initially struggled to adapt to the more technical European game, but did enough to convince French side Auxerre to sign him on a permanent deal.
He flourished in the nurturing environment under experienced Auxerre coach Guy Roux and although he was used out wide quite a bit, scored his fair share of goals.
By the time he moved to Portsmouth in 2006, he was a much more complete player and he became the spearhead for the Premiership club, scoring many important goals.
Manchester City chose to sign him in January 2008 and although injury has curtailed his career at Eastlands, he remains an integral part of the side under coach Mark Hughes.
"I am really happy the boss is showing such faith in me," Benjani said. "Being selected regularly means a lot to me and I will keep working hard to make sure that doesn't change.
"We all know that there will be new players coming into the club and I am absolutely looking forward to it. If you play amongst the best then it rubs off and people don't realise your faults and if you play and train with good quality players then you end up improving yourself.
"Bringing in new top-quality players will add to the challenge and give the manager options. It will be good for everyone - the players, the coaches and the supporters. I welcome it and I am very happy here."
His national team career with Zimbabwe has been equally impressive, taking over the captain’s armband from the great Peter Ndlovu after the 2006 African Nations Cup.
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